isosceles
by cabinseventy
Summary: It kind of just hits him how unfair everything is in the middle of a sleepover, right in between Piper's sleep talk and Jason's snores.
1. i

**For lack of a more extensive tagging system (basically exposing you to the same warnings i gave on ao3):**

 **Rating:** Teen and Up

 **Pairings:** F/M, M/M, F/F

 **Main Relationships** **:** Jason Grace/Piper McLean, Jason Grace/Leo Valdez, Apollo/Leo Valdez

 **Characters:** Leo Valdez, Jason Grace, Piper McLean, Drew Tanaka, Calypso, Nico Di Angelo, Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Travis & Connor Stoll, Apollo, Nyssa Barrera, Harley, Jake Mason

 **Additional Tags:** Unrequited Crush, One-Sided Jason Grace/Leo Valdez, Depression, Alternate Universe- High School, Developing Friendships, Angst with a Happy Ending, Underage Smoking, Age Difference, Implied Drew Tanaka/Rachel Elizabeth Dare, Underage Drinking (only once or twice)

 **there's also a bunch of cursing, but they're teenagers so like. anyway, hope you like this fic :)**

* * *

 **i**

Leo loved Piper and Jason a lot more than he even loved himself. They were his bestest friends in the entire world, and they were absolutely inseparable. You couldn't go too far looking for one and not find the others. Leo= Piper= Jason. Leo + Piper + Jason. It's just that simple.

Leo loved Piper like a sister. Who was he without her? They were like twins joined at the hip as soon as they were born. There was nothing that could separate them, there was nothing that could keep them from being apart.

Leo loved Jason. Jason. Jason. Jason. Jason. Jason with his stupid blue eyes, tiny lip scar, dumb blond hair. Leo and Jason were the best bros ever, though. And Leo was okay with that. Totally okay with that.

They were absolutely inseparable. Three peas in a pod. Three sardines in a can. Three was absolutely not a crowd.

And then Jason had stayed up all night and was in a three-hour call about how he and Piper had the most romantic of all kisses up on the roof of the school.

* * *

Leo's fingers curl up into a fist, pulling his blanket into a bunched up mess. His breathing slows, and his heart does a million acrobatic flips. He hadn't known his heart could do that, but it can and it's _painful_.

"So then what happens?" He croaks.

Jason sighs on the other side of the phone. "Well, you know how there was a full moon? Everything was perfect and when Piper was cold, we cuddled."

Leo pretends he cares because that what he's supposed to do as a best friend. "And this was all after the most amazing make out of the century?"

"I mean," Jason sighs again in that sick lovingly way. It makes Leo want to puke out his mac and cheese. "It was just so _amazing_. You know what I'm saying?"

No. Leo has never kissed anyone. Or at least romantically.

"Yeah. Totally."

Jason shuffles around, and he grunts. "Piper's a really good kisser."

Leo's fingernails rip through his blanket like it's nothing. "Gross. You do remember you're talking to her protective best friend here."

"Heh," Jason swallows. "But she's _really good_. What if I'm not good enough?"

"I think you're probably good." Leo rolls over on his bed until he's on his back and staring at the glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling. He can feel tiny butterflies flitting around painfully inside of him. His throat constricts. "Any kiss with _the_ Jason Grace is probably great, Jay. Not that I would know."

He wonders if he doesn't say the right thing because Jason doesn't respond. Leo has to stare at the phone because he's not sure whether the blond had hung up on him. He hadn't.

A few minutes of silence and Leo's panicked heartbeats, and then Jason's voice comes crackling back.

"Sorry, what was that? I had to put my books away." Jason sounds honest enough.

Leo swallows the gigantic lump in his throat. He laughs. "It's nothing. Just hope that now you and Pipes won't be kissing up a storm whenever I'm around."

Jason laughs too. "I think I'm too scared to even see her again. Do you have any idea how long I've waited to do that?"

No. No No. NonononononononoNONONO.

"How long?" Leo screams into his palm and bites softly. He's known Jason first, a total of 7 years now. He only introduced Piper to the blond a few years ago, maybe 5? 6? Either way, Leo was _first_.

"Bro, for the longest?" Jason sounds so tired. "Maybe since I first laid eyes on her. I think even when I was twelve I liked her."

" _Fuck!_ " Leo winces as he pulls his hand from his mouth, a thin trail of red tinted saliva dripping. He hadn't meant to bite so hard, but now that he's done it, he doesn't mind the sting.

"Are you okay? Leo?"

"That's great, Jay." Leo dismisses him. "I hope you and Piper get it going."

Jason sighs. "Yeah, me too. I'll see you on Monday, okay?"

"Can't wait."

He literally wants to never see Jason ever again.

The light on his phone flickers off, and he screams into his pillow. He doesn't want to scream too loud, because he knows the walls are thick but not exactly soundproof, and Nyssa is sleeping next door.

Piper. PiperPiperPiperPiperPiperPiper.

He jumps from his window, ignoring the brisk wind, and runs across the yard. He wishes that he and Piper weren't neighbors so he would have more time to think about what he's doing. Piper's light is on, but her window is shut.

Leo throws a rock at her window, and the next thing he knows he had climbed the tree and is sitting on her bed. Piper's hair is wrapped up in a towel because she just took a shower, and her laptop is playing some Disney movie that Leo doesn't care about.

"I heard you and Jason did the nasty." Leo finds himself saying. Piper rolls her eyes but her cheeks are a bit pink.

"As if. We only kissed." Her cheeks darken even more, and her fingers drift up to touch her lips as if re-imagining the feeling. "But it was good."

"Give me all the details, _guuuurl_." Leo gives his most valliest of valley girl speak, but it only sounds half-hearted to his own ears. Piper doesn't notice or doesn't bring it up.

"Well," Piper fiddles with a string on her flannel pajamas, "Jason's _really_ good. Maybe even a bit too good? Can you be too good at kissing?"

"Don't ask me." Leo crosses his legs, Indian style. "The only make outs I participate in are in my dreams." His dreams are either the result of super hormonal teenage boy thoughts or the darkest and more strangest nightmares. It's not hard for him to prefer one over the other.

"Gross, Leo." Piper scrunches up her face. "I didn't need to know what goes on across my window at night."

Leo shrugs. Piper didn't know everything about him. He wonders if he told her that he is absolutely in love with Jason, then would she give Leo a chance? Would she not pursue Jason? Would she even care?

"I can't believe you made out with the dreamiest of all the princes in the land," Leo's mouth is dry. "And all you have left to say for it is that the kissing was ' _good_ '."

Piper pauses the movie playing on her laptop. It's no accident that it stops just as the princess is about to kiss the prince. Leo snaps it shut. "Well, it _was_ good. It's like one of those things, y'know?"

Leo takes the moment to stare at Piper. Piper in all her feminine beauty and soft edges. Piper's eyes swirl with stars.

"What things?"

Piper sighs breathlessly and grins.

"You just had to experience it yourself."

* * *

Due to the fact that Piper's sister is town gossip girl, Drew, the news spread faster than the flu. By Monday, literally everyone and their mother knew. It's not an exaggeration- Leo's town probably has a population of maybe 5100 people, with only two high schools and one movie theater that was always a few weeks late with releases.

"Dude," Jason pokes Leo's face with his pen. "Where have you been all weekend? I texted you quite possibly a million times."

"I was busy." Leo rubs his eyes. He had no interest in whatever tiny font poem is swimming in front of his eyes.

Jason highlights something neatly on his paper. "Busy with what? I thought the arcade was closed this weekend."

"Babysitting. Harley's friend's birthday was canceled _because_ the arcade closed. Nyssa was at work, Jake was at therapy, and Dad's dealing with the hottest hot ride you will ever lay eyes on."

It's not a total lie- the party _was_ canceled, except the birthday kid had a sleepover instead. Everyone else was actually where Leo claimed them to be, leaving him alone to sleep and play some really shitty game on his really shitty phone. He had seen and ignored all eight of Jason's messages and then threw his phone across the room to sleep some more.

Jason clicks his tongue. The blond only has one sibling, an older sister in the military who sends letters every so often. "That's cool. What'd you and Harley do, then?"

Leo sighs, and drops his pencil. "Listen, man, I'm _really_ tired from the weekend, and I just took a Stats test not even fifteen minutes ago. Really not in the mood for interrogations with Detective Grace."

Jason gives a small laugh but doesn't push. It sends Leo into a silent bliss for the rest of English.

He's happy his next class is Spanish. He had originally taken French for his first two years of high school but then realized that he literally wouldn't have to slave himself if he took his native language (which was really English, not that it really matters). He could coast by with a low B if he slept through every class.

Which is why he was the only senior in Spanish 2, which is filled with tiny tot freshman and sophomores. It's literally one of the only fresh breaths he could take from the upperclassmen life. At first, it seemed annoying, but now he has a break from all the foggy gossip surrounding his friends.

* * *

Lunch is okay.

When he sits with Jason and Piper, they act like everything's okay, and nothing is going to hell.

Jason still is doing homework in between bites of poorly made pizza, just so he doesn't have to do it when he comes home from whatever sport of the season is in. Piper's still poking at her salad, as she listens to music. Leo still pokes jokes at ill-dressed teachers and spouting whatever funny joke he's seen on TV recently.

No one really sits at their table, but everyone does know who they are. JasonPiperLeo. No spaces in between, because why separate them?

Leo's okay with this. He can deal with this.

* * *

The week goes by so slow, and so fast at the same time. Every day is the same.

On Friday, it's practically ritual to spend the night at someone's house. The only reason why they didn't do it last week was because Leo needed to finish an essay. The one day he's gone, is the one day when the Earth stops spinning and Jason and Piper have their magical movie kiss of the century.

They settle in Piper's room because Jason has been lacking in his cleanliness and doesn't want the other two to see, and Leo doesn't want to imagine having his two best friends snuggling next to him in his very own room. He tells them Nyssa didn't do the wash and his clothes smell like gross socks, which actually leads him to texting Nyssa to do the wash so his room doesn't smell like gross socks.

Leo sleeps on Piper's bed because he won rock-paper-scissors. Jason and Piper pull up a couple of blankets to lay down on the floor next to the bed. Piper pulls the pillow right out from under Leo's head.

"Good night Leo." Piper yawns. Leo turns over, so he can see the very faint outline of his best friends bodies. The faint light from the stars and one of the nearby street lamps float through the open curtains. He can see Piper's the person closest to him, with the blanket snugly against the curve of her hip. Jason's wide chest is noticeable, as it goes up and down slowly. "Night, Jay."

"Good night, Piper. Good night, Leo." Jason mumbles and turns in his half awake state.

Leo mutters a _Buenos Noches_ but doesn't go to sleep. He has too much energy to go to sleep. His body aches for something. He stares at the other two.

They're like a married couple. It's disgustingly sweet. Jason and Piper are facing each other, and their hands kind of touch slightly. Piper's all curled in just so, and in one move Jason could probably hug her to his body.

It's not fair.

Leo sits up, listening to Piper's mumbling. Her sleep talk is less comprehensible than it was as a child. Jason's snores are a bit louder than it was years ago.

It's not fair.

Leo doesn't look back when he jumps out the window, and runs down the street.

It's not fair.

* * *

 **hi! i'm caitlyn, and i'm just here to mention that this fic was originally posted on ao3, but i'm crossposting all my fics over (most of which are valgrace and apolleo!). i can tell you right now, that isos is actually 27 chapters and just above 115k words, but i'm choosing to have weekly updates instead of posting it all at once. this goes for any other chaptered fics i have or items in a series.**

 **in this fic, you shouldn't hear from me much, except for responses to comments, which i'll probably do personally if there's a username, or will respond at the end of the next chap for anons.**

 **if you recognize me from ao3, or just have any questions about anything, please don't hesitate to talk to me!**


	2. l

**l**

His sneakers are dirtier than he last remembers. If he pushes down and swipes across the floor, he can leave a dark mark in the carpet.

Piper taps his head.

"Hello? Earth to Leo?"

Leo's head bounces up, and he sees Piper offering a game controller. He doesn't even register her question, but he sees her mouth moving. "What?"

Piper sighs. "Do you want to play or...?"

"Nah, I'm good." Leo eyes the television screen where Piper's character dances around a dead Jason character. Piper has a flat screen. "I'm going into the kitchen, want anything?"

Piper shrugs. "Juice is good. Maybe a broom to sweep up Jason's dignity."

Jason gives a pathetic cry, as he mourns his loss. Jason never loses, except quite possibly only with video games because his father bans them from their house. Piper is normally a beast, and Leo is Leo. Average.

Leo's hand barely catches the glass as it falls from the counter. The entire kitchen smells delicious because the oven is on and there are about a million cupcakes inside.

"Hands off, dork." Drew enters the kitchen, shoves Leo away from the baking goods, and pulls on mittens. Her phone is fitted in between her shoulder and ear, as she pulls out the multiple trays.

Leo steps back as he watches her run around the kitchen to find space for all the cupcakes. Her long black hair is tossed up into a bun, and her sweatpants have paint stains everywhere. Her ACDC t-shirt has a hole in the armpit.

If their high school was to see the scandal that is Drew at home, they would die of horror. And then copy her style, because Drew is just that good.

"Yeah, so like I _told_ her that I was _not_ going to the mall. And then she says, _well who cares about what you think_ ," Drew argues into her phone. She shoots Leo a suspicious side-eye as he slowly pours out the juice into three cups. "Listen, I'll talk to you later. I have to finish these cupcakes, and then paint my nails again. Love ya."

She slides her phone onto the counter and props her hand on her hip. She glares at Leo. "What is it, loser?"

"You just have this lovely way with words." Leo deadpans.

She scoffs and waves him off. Her eyes examine the rows of cupcakes cautiously as if expecting them to burn up in front of her eyes. With her glare, they just might.

Leo figures he should get some chips too. He pulls out a bowl. "What's the cupcakes for?"

"Prom. I'm going to be prom queen." Drew yawns, and scrolls through her phone. He can hear the tiny clicks whenever she types. "I hear both Annabeth and Juniper are running, and even though I know I'm going to win, this is-"

"Extra security." Leo knows Annabeth Chase from his AP Stats class. She has a perfect score. He's never met Juniper but hears she's the sweetest thing since candy. "Just in case."

"Not that I need it." Drew's an icy queen. "Don't get that into your head."

"Duly noted." Leo snatches a warming cupcake and speeds away.

He doesn't get what Drew is going on about, because prom is in _months_. Personally, Leo doesn't think she has anything to worry about due to the fact that she's _Drew._ He's never known Drew to back down from a challenge.

When he gets back to his friends, Jason is pouting and Piper's laughing. It's so normal that it's good. Great even.

Then Jason leans in with that dumb pout of his, and Piper relents and they kiss.

"Don't worry, you're always a winner to me," Piper mumbles under her smile.

"Right back at you." Jason smiles too.

Leo clears his throat. It's filled with so much cotton that it physically hurts.

He grins when he places down all he's holding. He hogs all the chips and the unfrosted cupcake to himself.

When Jason reaches for some of the salty snacks, Leo hugs the bowl closer and says, "Pringles are for singles only."

Jason rolls his eyes but leaves it alone. At the end of the day, Leo doesn't even finish the bowl. His cupcake was delicious but sat like a heavy rock in his stomach.

He ignores every sweet little kiss his best friends share whenever Jason loses. He doesn't think either of them is actively playing the game at this point.

His phone vibrates. It's Nyssa.

 **NYSSA [18:31]:** I'm ordering pizza

 **NYSSA [18:31]:** Do you want something new?

 **ME [18:33]:** not hngry

 **NYSSA [18:33]:** Are you at Piper's for the night?  
 **NYSSA [18:33]:** If you're staying, which is fine, then actually go to school this time.

 **NYSSA [18:33]:** Unlike last time, where you and Piper just skipped.

 **ME [18:37]:** im not stying

 **NYSSA [18:37]:** It's fine if you do

 **ME [18:37]:** im cming

Leo flips his phone shut. He's the only one he knows who has a painfully old flip phone where there is practically half of the alphabet on one button. It's a pain, but it's not like he really needs it for anything else.

"Sorry guys, but I need to go home." Leo's lies slither through his teeth so easily, he feels no regrets. "Family emergency with my dad and all."

Piper nods, as she shuts down the gaming system. Jason leans back on the couch, his hands folded over his eyes. Underneath the digits, Leo can see Jason's blue eyes eyeing Piper.

Is he checking her out?

Much to his displeasure, the front door doesn't slam shut.

* * *

In the only park in town, there are only three swings. They all squeak when they get to any height over 3 feet, but the right one has a wider seat.

When Leo was a kid, his mother used to spin him so the chains would lock, and then push him. At the first swing, he would scream when the chains spun him around as they unwinded.

Leo's feet don't dangle like they used to when he sits down. It rained last night, so there's a puddle underneath the seat.

If he turns his head a quarter of a degree, he would see Jason and Piper sitting on the other two swings. They're not even swinging, which makes this trip a waste of a free class period. Leo can barely hear their low conversation. He can definitely hear their laughter, as he pushes himself slowly.

Jason has maybe three different laughs that are consistent. One is the little snicker he gives when Leo tells a joke. It's a _haha, that was actually funny_. The other is the nervous laugh he gets when he's anxious. Leo's heard it when they first met. The final one is the rare sparkly and shining one, that sends an avalanche into Leo's insides. It's when Jason's laughing so hard, he's ready to cry. Leo wants to record it and listen to it all day long.

Piper has four laughs. The little giggle she does when they used to do the dumbest stuff. The maniacal laughter when they get away with it. She also has the ugly and endearing cackle where she's ready to piss her pants because it's so goddamn funny. Leo's caught her snort a few times, and honestly, it's so disgusting Leo loves it.

Right now, they have their own little chuckles between each other. It's so tiny and cutesy and lovely, that it's reserved only for each other.

The sound of the chains breaking interrupts Leo, as he falls into the puddle. He hits his knee against the ground, and the water soaks through his jeans. Piper's yelling at him, but also laughing. Jason's worried as expected.

Piper's hand is warm on Leo's bicep. "You okay?"

"Yeah."

"You sure?"

No.

"Pretty sure. No need to worry about me, Beauty Queen."

Piper punches him in the arm, once she deems him okay. The swing lays broken in a dirty puddle of water. Leo feels bad that his keys and wallet get wet. His phone is only damp, but it works perfectly fine.

He still has to go to school, because their free period is almost over. They only have ten minutes to make it back, which they can make if they jog it.

"You guys go on without me. I'll let my pants air dry on the way to school." Leo waves them away. Both of them look uncertain but say their goodbyes.

Leo walks to the nearest convenience store instead. In front of the window, there's some kid he vaguely recognizes from passing in the hallways at school. She's smoking, and flipping through her phone. She's also kind of pretty.

The aisles are empty, which is expected since the average person would be at work or school right now. He skims through each row without any real direction.

"Hey, kid." The clerk in the front eyes him cautiously. He has a couple of red pimples on his forehead, and a scar over his eye. "Are you skipping school? Cutting ain't cool."

Leo slaps down three Slim Jims and a can of Monster. "Can I get a pack of those." He gestures to the cigarette shelf. Leo's never felt the urge to smoke cigarettes, until now. He kind of still doesn't but he thinks he might look cool. Maybe the chick out front would dig how badass he is.

"ID?"

"Drivers license?"

"... Do you think I can't read? It says you're 18 next August. It's October."

Leo shrugs. Whatever, he never even liked the picture, because he looked like a serial killer. A serial killer with a popcorn kernel stuck in his teeth because the annoying photographer hated Leo from the start."I tried. Can't you buy them for me or something?"

The clerk's name is Luke. "Sorry, kid, you're underage."

Leo glances out the window, and he can still see the caramel hair of the girl who was smoking. Through the window, he can see she's looking at a collection of her own selfies.

Luke's eyes follow his, and he pinches the bridge of his nose. He slides a pack against the counter and rings up the items.

"I'm only doing this because I know it's hard impressing someone. Keep in mind that smoking kills, and in years, you both won't look so hot."

This isn't the first illegal thing Leo's done. When he was 13, both him and Piper spray painted a dick on all the basketball hoops at his school. Only Leo was suspended, but Piper got a longer detention. Then, when he was 15, Leo smoked weed for the first time. It wasn't all crazy and amazing as people described it, but he did laugh at himself for a long time.

Leo thanks him, and tries to stand casually near the girl. She offered him a lighter, but that was it. Leo's never smoked a cigarette, and it must've been obvious because she laughed.

"It's the other way." The girl says, dark eyes staring pointedly at Leo. She has some kind of European accent. "The fag? Faces the other way. Orange to your mouth, not white."

Did she just call him a faggot? Leo's never been called one, but he's probably called tons of people fags. When he looks back on it, he winces. By definition, he's probably a total fag. It's actually gross hearing it directed back at himself. Leo coughs and just gives her back the lighter and his only cigarette pack. "Sorry."

"Don't smoke if you can't," She drops hers and crushes it with her sneaker. She sticks out her hand. "Calypso."

It's definitely a European accent, even if Leo can't place it. He's eighty percent sure _'fag_ ' is British slang, but she doesn't sound too English. It's interesting and new, so Leo is totally into this girl.

"Leo." They shake. Her hand's warm and when Leo scratches his nose, it smells faintly of vanilla lotion. Cool. "Sounds exotic. Like the music?"

"Probably. My dad liked the world and culture." Calypso pulls out a pack of gum. She doesn't offer him any, and he doesn't ask for any. He opens a Slim Jim and chews at it.

They just stand in silence in front of the convenience store. It's honestly one of the most calming things Leo's done in the past couple of weeks. It's nice in a delinquent way.

Leo's okay with skipping school like this, even if he was only skipping two classes. At around 3, he could try and catch a bus. Or maybe he could walk home, and could probably get home before Harley does. It always sucks hearing Harley complain when the kid is home by himself for more than ten minutes.

Leo gives a simple wave to Calypso, who's back on her phone. Okay.

He finds himself wandering the town, looking for any roads that don't fall along the usual route Piper or Jason take home from school. Knowing them, they might've driven together, because Piper has her license, and Jason has his wimpy permit.

* * *

He has to turn off his phone along the way, because of all the messages from Piper were starting to build up. It's not something he wants to deal with.

 **PIPES [13:01]:** We have a sub today

 **PIPES [13:02]:** Everyone's switching names

 **PIPES [13:02]:** I am now Clovis

 **PIPES [13:04]:** Fear me as my snoring will:

 **PIPES [13:04]:** Terrify your children and cause earthquakes.

 **PIPES [13:16]:** Are you skipping?

 **PIPES [13:17]:** You never skip without me.

 **PIPES [13:17]:** Where did you go?

 **PIPES [13:18]:** Leo, can you actually answer?

 **PIPES [13:18]:** It's kind of rude.

 **PIPES [13:19]:** I swear if you were kidnapped,

 **PIPES [13:30]:** I will find you and kill you.

 **PIPES [13:30]:** for making me worry

 **PIPES [14:10]:**... leo?

* * *

Leo has a dog named Festus. She's the most beautiful golden retriever he's ever laid eyes on. Leo's had her since he was 7, but she's never lost the excitement of seeing him walk through the door every day.

Festus jumps every time Leo walks in the door. It's something he loves and lives for. Sometimes, he doesn't know what he would do without her. If Piper and Jason weren't slipping down their slippery best friend slope, then Festus would immediately replace them. Then maybe Harley or Nyssa.

Now that he thinks about it, Leo doesn't have too many dependable friends. He definitely has acquaintances that he can call upon for a joke or so, but not anyone he would tell his deepest and darkest innermost secret to. That's what Piper and Jason are for.

Kind of sucks.


	3. o

**o**

Jake is Leo's quietest, and oldest sibling. He didn't use to be so quiet until he got into the accident, and he lost control of his body. Leo thinks that's a suitable excuse- losing all feeling of most of your limbs? Yeah, he would go quiet too.

Leo can't help but to look up to him, though. Jake's still so fearless and responsible. It's a blessing. Even though he's stuck in that stupid wheelchair for the rest of his life, Jake is still kind.

Nyssa is Leo's only sister. Piper is a sister to Leo too, but Nyssa is flesh and blood. They got along fairly well, and she's like a mother too. She always fusses over Leo, which he doesn't mind. It's nice to be fussed over.

And then there's cute little Harley. If Leo had to play favorites, it may or may not be his adorable eight-year-old little brother. He's always so happy, and excitable. Leo's probably only seen Harley cry once since he was a baby.

Leo's dad is Leo's dad. There's not much to say about him. He's either in three places: a, the basement; b, his garage where he works; c, anywhere but home. There'll never be enough to say about him.

Leo's mother is dead. Died years ago in a fire that Leo survived. Leo knows it's not his fault, but sometimes he wonders. What if she was alive, and Leo died? Things might be better.

His father has a lot of bad luck with women. It's like something pulled out of a record book. Jake's mom divorced and sends checks every month on time. Last Leo heard, she was in Germany. Jake never shares her letters, and no one wants to read something so personal anyway.

Nyssa's mom died too. A hit and run, it was nothing special. Leo's dad was cheating on her with Leo's mom at the time. Leo's mother never knew this, and Leo's a bit happy she didn't. His mama could raise hell on Earth.

Harley's mom is a kid. Not an _actual_ kid like Harley, but she was really young. It's disgusting that his dad could ruin some teenager's life like that. She calls all the time and visits Harley every other month, but refuses to even speak with their father. Sometimes she sends money, but it's understandably hard for her because she's pushing through the final years of med school. Harley loves her.

* * *

Nyssa honks the horn for about the fifth time, to notify Leo she's there. It's hard _not_ to notice her presence- the car is a classic, and a single Nyssa honk is longer than like, half a song.

"You're coming to the movies with us, right?" Jason waves at Nyssa. He ducks his head and folds his arms.

For a moment, Leo can imagine Jason asking him out on a date. _You'll come, won't you? I'll be sad if you don't_ , Jason would pout in that boy-next-door look he has going on. Leo would poke his finger into Jason's wide chest with a smirk and a quick, _Yeah, but you're paying, sweet cheeks._

"Sure," Leo winks. "Make sure to find a horror one, so Pipes can snuggle up to you."

That's not what he wants to say.

"Gotcha." Jason snorts. Both of them know that Piper would never be scared of any horror put on. If anything, Leo's the most scared of the bedsheet ghosts and the sparkly vampires.

Nyssa honks _again_ , and Leo rolls his eyes. Jason shrugs and tells him to go with his sister. So Leo does.

" _Took you long enough_." Nyssa's Spanish is rapid fast, as she slowly drives from the school entrance. "You do realize I have a bunch of stuff to do."

"I can walk home. Or, like, drive myself."

"And let you get run over? Or total my car? No thanks."

"I can drive."

"If that's what you want to call it."

Leo fiddles with the radio. It flickers from whatever rock Nyssa had on to a talk show, to a car commercial, and then to a lame country tune. He switches it back to the commercial, which turns off and a random pop anthem comes on. Leo only ever listens to pop, but he thinks he should broaden his horizons one day.

"-drink all the milk? I can't remember if there's any left." Nyssa's a really slow driver. She claims it's due to caution, but even on long empty straights, she goes at barely 40 mph. Careful, but not conventional.

"Dunno."

Nyssa flicks her eyes toward Leo, before sighing. She turns up the heat in one fluid motion.

He fiddles with his sweater zipper. "What was that for?"

"I didn't say anything, _amigo_."

"The sigh. You sighed like you can not simply believe that this great presence was in your car."

"I didn't sigh. Definitely would not have sighed like that."

Leo shifts in the seat to stare at Nyssa's profile, as she concentrates on getting them to the supermarket safely. "But you totally did."

"Doesn't mean anything, _amigo_."

"Quit saying that."

"What? I've only said like four words."

" _AMIGO_."

Nyssa pulls into the parking lot and stops the car. She turns to stare back at Leo. They both have the same brown eyes.

"What?"

"I didn't say anything, Leo."

Leo averts his eyes and unbuckles his seatbelt. "Can you unlock the doors?"

"Yeah," Nyssa sniffs. "You know I'm your sister _and_ a friend, right? You can tell me anything."

 _Oh god_. Leo does not want to tell his older-sister-and-maybe-friend anything. Especially not now, while they're in a parking lot on the way to get groceries. His entire day has been a mental strain, and he does not need this.

It's not like he has anything to say anyway. There's nothing going on, and there's nothing wrong.

"Mhm," Leo mumbles before changing his answer. "I know."

"Good," Nyssa breathes. "Good."

* * *

Jason calls.

"Can you chill out for a minute," Leo fumbles with his phone. "I have to finish my homework."

"You never do homework."

"Well, it's senior year, so maybe I should start."

This makes Jason laugh. Leo feels tired and a bit annoyed. Not exactly at Jason, but in general. It's complicated.

"Can I come over?" Jason says finally.

Leo glares at the wall. "When have you ever asked to come to _Casa de_ Leo?"

"True," Jason's probably smiling. "Hey, what'd you get for #3 for math?"

Leo snorts. "I'm in AP Stat. You're in, like, Algebra or something."

"Am not. Can't help it if you're super great at numbers." Jason's compliment isn't amazing but it sends some warmth into Leo. Leo switches his phone to his other hand and continues writing.

"Is there any point to this?"

"Is there ever any point to any of our conversations?"

" _Jason_."

" _Leo_."

Leo rubs his temples. All these words floating around, and Jason's sudden playfulness is giving him a headache. He needs something to drink. "It's like my greatness is rubbing off on you."

"Your annoyingness? Yeah, probably."

"Rude."

Jason laughs again. Even though this conversation has no direction nor importance, Leo still indulges in it. He skips down the steps to the kitchen. He narrowly avoids Harley who's running around with two action figures in hand. Festus is bounding after him, barking excitedly.

"Did you know that my Spanish teacher threatened to fail me?" Jason says.

"You? As if." Leo snickers.

"Yeah, I'm kidding. I just wanted to see if I could make you laugh." Jason snickers too.

See, that's the thing with Jason Grace. He doesn't know that everything he says, everything he does, everything he even _thinks,_ is him flirting. He thinks that all these _compliments_ and all these _conversations of nothingness_ and all these little _laughs_ are totally normal to share.

It makes Leo's insides burn. How can you like something so dumb so much that it hurts?

"My, my, Jason Grace, how kinky." Leo bites his lip.

"How was that? In any way? Kinky?" Jason must've inhaled gallons of laughing gas because he can. Not. Stop. Laughing.

"You're a very kinky person, Mr. Grace." Leo turns on the tap. Opening a water bottle is too much effort. "Or is that even your real name?"

"Now I'm a secret agent? I'm not even the one who's acting all secretive."

"What?" Leo spits out his water. "Are you accusing me of coming up with some nefarious plan? Are you accusing me so I would say _nefarious_?"

"What?" Jason might be a jock and a blond but he's not _dumb_. "I've just been wondering where you've been lately? Also, you sneak out-" Jason stops himself.

"What."

Jason sounds uncomfortable. "You sneak out whenever we sleepover. It's been a few weeks, and every single time you jump out the window and run. Where do you even go?"

Leo swallows. "Nowhere."

" _Leo_."

Leo pulls at his hair. "Fine. I go to the store. 7-Eleven. To buy chips. And I eat them. I get hungry at night. Must be hormones."

It's not a total lie. The first time Leo jumped, he found himself wandering the streets until he was suddenly in line to buy a bag of chips. His sneakers had streaked against the tiles and the clerk glared at him. After that, Leo's only been walking around. Clearing his head. He's not going to tell Jason that. This is _Leo's_ secret, not Jason and Leo's secret.

"Oh." Jason sounds satisfied enough. "See you at the movies over the weekend? Piper's excited for the new 'horror film of the century'."

Leo feels uneasy. He doesn't want to go to the movies and watch what _he_ suggested. He suggested it as a joke, and Jason took it seriously. He doesn't want to actually see Piper snuggling up in Jason's arms. "About that..."

"Dude." Jason sounds dead serious. "You are _not_ going to bail on me."

"Sorry, man," Leo thinks he sound apologetic enough. "Dad's been overworked with so much paperwork, that he needs me to file it all. Then I'm totally going to try and help him around the shop. You know how it is? Gotta cherish the limited time with my dad."

"Yeah," Jason's tone is spiteful. "I get it. No problem, we'll reschedule."

Leo hates that Jason thinks about him so much. Leo wants to ruin any potential date between the two love birds, but at the same time, he _doesn't_. He can't do that to Jason. He definitely can't do that to Piper. "No, man. Just tell Pipes I bailed and then have some cute little date between you two. I think chicks dig that kind of romantic stuff."

"Hmm. Since when were you a lady whisperer?"

 _Since I liked your dick like a lady too_. The thought makes Leo almost laugh. "I've always been this smooth. You've just never felt the real Valdez suave."

Jason laughs. "If suave is what you want to call it. Anyway, have to go, I think someone's calling me. See you in school tomorrow?"

"Meh."

"Okay, Leo. Bye."

Leo closes his phone and looks up to see Jake raising an eyebrow. Leo hadn't noticed him come in. "Work? With Dad?"

"It was the only thing I could think of." Leo lets out a breath he didn't know he was holding. "And maybe he does need help? I'll be his little handy-dandy repair boy."

Jake wheels past Leo, fidgeting with his arm brace. "Maybe you shouldn't lie? Just say you don't want to go."

"Maybe," Leo says. "Can't change it now. Hey, can you help me with my homework?"

Jake smiles weakly.


	4. v

**v**

Piper's hands are shaking, so Leo holds them in his own.

"It's cold isn't it?" Piper's grateful as she tries to absorb his warmth.

Leo doesn't feel cold, so he shrugs. Piper grabs Leo's hands and presses them against her face.

"You're so warm." She bearhugs him. It used to bother him that Piper is practically his height (ignoring that one embarrassing year, where Piper actually _was_ taller than him), but now it's only duly noted.

Piper buries her face in his shoulder. "Why do classrooms stay so cold in the winter? What's wrong with our systems heating?"

"Maybe Drew's icy touch reached it. For a woman so cold, she sure is _hot_." Leo says. " _Muy caliente_."

Piper pinches him. "Rude. Under that cruel layer, very, very, very deep under, she's _surprisingly_ human and has a bit of feelings."

"And tits." Leo cups his hands and squeezes. Piper rolls her eyes, and the bell rings, ending their shared History class.

"Don't forget to take the homework!" The sub calls, scrolling through her posts on some useless social media page. The sub wasn't a very helpful one.

Leo and Piper normally walk the halls together, but Leo had darted out at the first sign of the bell. He shoves past people, yelling awkward apologies as he runs up the stairs.

His final class of the day is Photography, and he has a freaking D. How do you completely and utterly fail an art class?

Secretly, he thinks his teacher is one of those evil gargoyles that sit on buildings just to stare at you. His teacher is actually really sweet, but Leo didn't care enough to take pictures. All his pictures were crappy pixelated ones taken on his phone in the school hallways.

His teacher, technically Ms. Spring, but goes as Persephone, tended to have a preference for landscape pictures of nature and deems Leo's pictures as " _uncreative and bland"_ and " _lacking basic camera skills_ ". Which is _super_ rude, since photography obviously isn't the easy A everyone expected.

"Partner project, no exception. Body parts. Studio Lightning or Natural. You have the rest of the day." Persephone's massaging her temples and sipping her iced coffee. "No inappropriate subjects. I do not want to see any butts, cleavage or anything else normally covered by a bikini."

Leo frowns, as his class literally dissipates in seconds. There are only a few stragglers reaching for cameras and searching for partners.

He's stuck with some emo freshman, who sits in the back of the class near all the computers.

Leo sticks out his hand. "Leo Valdez, extraordinaire."

"Nico di Angelo, doesn't care."

That's all the conversation they share for the rest of the day.

* * *

It's maybe an hour walk from school to his father's workshop. It's some kind of car-repair-but-we-also-fix-most-anything mashup. His dad runs the only car repair in town, so Leo knows exactly who drives what and who crashes who, while he also knows what child broke what toy and what person broke what computer.

This is how he knows the red Prius parked in the front belongs to Piper's mom. Leo is 80% sure that her mom and his father are an on-and-off secret thing (maybe even before either of them was born), but Piper's mom currently has a long term boyfriend. It's too complicated to even think about, so very frankly, he doesn't.

Jake is the lovely secretary except without the more inviting boobs or the tight pencil skirt. "Yo."

"Yo." Leo nods, slapping his school bag on the counter. "What's for dinner?"

"Is that all you do nowadays?" Jake flicks through a magazine. It's one of the earlier copies of _Hot Rod_. "Eat, go to school, come home, sleep, eat, shower, sleep again? Rinse and repeat?"

"Don't forget do homework. I do homework now."

"After 12 years? That's the surprise at the end of Life's cereal."

Leo leans over the counter, to snatch the bag of chips from Jake's lap. "There is a cereal called _Life_. It doesn't give cool toys, though."

Jake rolls his eyes, as he disappears under the counter. He comes back up with a box of random junk. "Can you put these back on the shelves they belong to? I'm exhausted."

"No problem-o." The store is empty, so Leo has no problem with yelling back at Jake as he goes through aisles. "How are you hanging in there?"

"With what?"

"The whole... y'know?"

"What?... Oh. I'm okay. I still can't move my legs or anything, but my right leg feels the temperature. It's a weird process."

"That's good. I think." Leo hums, separating wood screws from machine screws. He doesn't say much else until he gets back to the counter.

He pulls on his bag straps until it falls and the bag hits his legs. He thumbs behind him. "Can I go out back? I have homework and like, stuff to do."

Jake nods absentmindedly but throws the key for the backroom. "I don't think you've ever asked me if you can do homework before. I'm not going to be the one who stops this miracle train as it passes by."

Leo rolls his eyes and offers a grin.

He falls asleep and it's Jake who's shaking him awake. Harley's sitting on the table, talking about his day. Nyssa's punching something into the vending machine.

Leo doesn't expect his dad to be there. Just like he doesn't expect his dad to be at dinner, nights out, birthdays, and first days of schools. He'll be at Leo's graduation, or at least he promised he would.

"You fell asleep." Jake peels the paper sticking from Leo's face off.

Harley's gathering Leo's book expertly. "Nyssa told me to never do _my_ homework when I'm tired, or else I'll never get good grades." He scolds Leo with as serious as a face as he can manage.

"That's right," Nyssa pops open a soda can. "And look, Harley gets stickers on every test he takes."

"Yeah!"

"Shit man," Leo stretches with a yawn. "I wish I got stickers for good work."

"Nyssa said not to curse." Harley rubs his hand into Leo's face, smushing his features all around. Leo winces- for a kid, Harley has strong arms. Leo has pathetic wimpy arms. "She says it's bad manners."

"Did she also say that I'm a teenager who is always filled with the impulse to curse?" Harley stares at Leo with wide eyes, before turning towards Nyssa.

"Nys, Nys! What if Leo's a teenager who is always filled with the impulse to curse?"

Harley's in a phase where he repeats everything people say. He says it's because all smart people do is copy and ask questions. Leo couldn't exactly disagree with him.

Jake's messing with Leo's phone. "Piper called. You should call her back and tell her you were sleeping."

Truth was, Leo was awake when Piper called. He was in the middle of his frustrating AP World when his phone rang. He let it continue ringing and stared at the text in front of him. He figured that he would talk to her after his homework, but then he fell asleep.

"Okay." Leo shrugs. He makes a small mental note to call her.

Nyssa's giving Harley the soda, whose grabby hands reach for the can like his life was depending on it. Jake's fiddling with Leo's phone, taking the old device apart in his lap. It hits him that this is his family.

The only ones missing are Festus, Piper, and Jason.

* * *

His hair is the absolute worst to deal with after a shower. It gets all tangled up, so combing it is like trying to do brain surgery. If Leo's ever done brain surgery, that is.

He has a bathroom connected to his room and Harley's. He doesn't think twice when he walks into his room naked.

Piper's on his bed, and she doesn't even blink.

"Did you shave?" Piper raises an eyebrow. "You've grown a bit too."

Leo groans, and slides on the nearest pair of boxers. He really has to clean his room sooner or later. "Can you not comment on my body?"

"You act like I haven't seen you run around the block naked a million times before." Piper lays on the bed, belly up. She folds her arms under her head. "It's actually kind of alarming now that I think about it. I can remember when you were a tiny little baby. And so was Leo Jr-"

"Please. Stop." Leo sits on his bed. He lays down, naked back against Piper's stomach. They make an X with their bodies. X marks the spot, Leo's mind helpfully supplies for him. "Why are you even here?"

"I don't know?" Piper's brow furrows. "It's not like I haven't come over just because. Your family is nice."

"And me?"

"You too. But news flash? Everyone knows Nyssa's kind of better."

"Whatever." Leo sits up, tugging his hand through his hair. Piper sits up too, adding her own fingers to untangle his hair. He simply lets her, leaving her to work magic. "Your family is okay."

Piper laughs. "Who, Drew? She's alright sometimes. And my mom is always shopping. She says that she misses when we used to play dress up together."

"Who?"

"My mother. When me and Drew used to dig through her closets and smother on makeup."

"I know. I was there."

"Then why'd you ask who, dummy?" Piper frees her fingers from his head, before scooting back towards the headboard. She pulls her legs up and rests her head on her knees. "My dad emailed me the other day."

Leo sits next to her and folds his legs. "What about?"

"Nothing. Everything? He said he's got this cool new role that's going to seriously boost his career." Piper sighs. "Something he has to weight train and build his body for. He sent a picture. He has abs."

"Abs are good."

"Abs _are_ good."

Piper's dad is an actor. Or at least, he will be one day. Piper hasn't seen him since she was twelve, and that was six years ago. He was on his way to a so-called big role that landed him in a movie with terrible reviews and a bad haircut. It's not terrible- Tristan McLean still sends gifts and money, and every so often sends the lengthiest emails you could ever imagine. It's nice.

Leo wants emails from his father.

Piper sniffs. "How are you?"

"Good. Like your dad's abs."

Piper blows a hair from out of her face. "Seriously dude?"

"Sorry. I meant, sexy. Like your dad's abs." Leo corrects himself.

"Nevermind." Piper rolls her eyes. They then light up and her hands bunch up Leo's sheets. "Did I tell you about the date me and Jason had the other day?" This is the one Leo suggested. The-horror-film-that-was-a-few-bros-but-then-became-a-date.

" _What?_ No way. Spill." This is what Leo thinks Piper wants to hear, so he says it. He was calm until this wave of pure and raw _emotion_ overwhelms him.

Piper smiles, and she looks happy. "We went to the movies, y'know? Saw that dumb scary flick where _another_ girl is stuck in some haunted house and there's a random chainsaw guy chasing after her. Literally no backstory at all."

"Uh huh."

"And when the girl screams, I lean back into Jason. He looks down at me and says something, _I don't even know what_ , and drops his arm around me." Piper's glowing.

"Uh. Huh."

"I lifted the armrest, and we- yeah."

Leo blinks. "You had _sex_ with Jason Grace at a movie?"

"No!" Piper blurts, turning pink. "We just made out. A lot."

Leo lets out a low whistle. "Nice one."

Leo sees himself as Piper, all curled up in the arms of Jason Grace watching a movie in those stiff and stained seats. He wouldn't have to fake being scared like Piper, but he would be more dramatic. And then he would turn in, and Jason would whisper in a low voice, _Don't worry, I'll protect you_. Then Leo would know that everything will be alright.

Except he's not Piper.

"We went to get burgers after we were kicked out." Piper continues. "Jason's a gentleman."

"I bet." Leo slides down and lays facing the wall. "I'm tired. Feel free to walk out anytime you want."

Piper slides down too. "Nah. I think I'll sleep here."

Leo doesn't want to kick her out, but he wants her _out._ He flips over, staring at her face. "What if I kick you in my sleep?"

"I'll kick you back." Piper snorts, closing her eyes. "Is Jake making breakfast? I can take you to school too, and we can pick up Jason on the way."

Leo bites his lip. Lately, he's been walking to school to _avoid_ getting in a car with the two lovebirds. He doesn't want to flat out say no because as Leo Valdez, best friend to Piper and Jason, he should have a genuine reason for not hanging out with them. He can't just say, _Uh no thanks, I kinda am still in love with your boyfriend and I don't want to hear about all the little jokes you make together or the next date you want to go on or else I might puke._

He doesn't say anything, and Piper smiles as she takes the silence as an agreement.


	5. e

**e**

He doesn't even think of it when the twins with linked arms sit on either side of him in the middle of more Spanish conjugations. Both are with matching grins, brown hair and blue eyes, and tall lanky bodies.

The brother on his left starts, "I'm Travis-"

"-And I'm Conner." the one on his right finishes. "You're Leo, right? The guy who pulled the fire alarm three times last year?"

"Yeah?"

Travis smirks, and they nod at each other. "Just-"

"-Watch."

The trio stares across the room, at a familiar emo kid. It's been 2 months into the school year, and only now Leo is recognizing that Nico Di Angelo is in both his Spanish and Photo class. He finds it pathetic because those are ⅔ classes not shared with either Jason or Piper (the other ⅓ being Stat because he's just a lot better at math than the two combined), which makes them the ⅔ classes he ends up texting either Jason or Piper. Or at least he used to- his habits have been slipping. Noticing these people isn't too bad of a change anyway.

Nico's opens his notebook, and confetti blows up in his face. It somehow sets off the fire alarm, and the sprinklers come on. In between the water and people running, Leo sees Nico glaring at the two brothers.

Travis and Connor are laughing together, a beautiful cacophony of snorts and cackles. Nico is irritated, as he lines up to leave the classroom, but has the tiniest hint of a smile.

Leo is completely and utterly hooked.

* * *

Leo nearly gets his eye poked out with a plastic spoon. When he looks up from the lunch line, he sees the two brothers waving at him.

He pays for his lunch with no delay and follows them. He only briefly glances at his friends who aren't even at the lunch table they normally sit at. It's Wednesday, so that means Jason is at a club meeting, and Piper's buying lunch. She would be sitting by herself today.

"You walk slow," Connor whines and Travis pokes him. It starts a poking war. Why is Leo following them?

It ends when Connor slaps at Travis' hands too much for the other to bear. Travis slides an arm around Leo's shoulder like they're best buddies. "So."

"So?"

Connor walks ahead of them, as they travel a flight of stairs. All three of them ignore the _'No Students Allowed_ ' sign. It's not Leo's first time breaking onto the roof, but he normally doesn't do it _just because_.

"Welcome-" Connor opens his arms wide.

"-To the place you want to be," Travis whispers in Leo's ear. It sends down shivers, but not entirely bad shivers. He holds his lunch tray tighter as he follows the two.

The roof is off limits to all students during the day. The only ones allowed are the art and gardening students, who need permission. The last time Leo's been up here was last year when he dumped paint on Drew's head. Drew never found out who did it, but strangely did end up starting a curious trend of dyed hair.

Travis slides down against the wall of the school. Leo sits next to him, followed by Connor. There is other people's stuff here that he doesn't want to touch.

"They're in the bathroom," Connor shrugs and stares at his sandwich. The two siblings switch sandwiches immediately. " _Mom_ , I _hate_ mayonnaise."

"She can't tell the difference," Travis explains. "I love mayonnaise."

"Mayo is alright." Leo tilts his head this way and that. He's not friends with these people, but he feels like he is. But he also has the awkward intruding sense you get when you're the new kid following a bunch of people who knew each other for years. Which is what he is.

Connor's eyes widen like Leo's said the worst thing he's ever heard. "How dare you insult me in my own house? Mayo is something from the pits of hell."

"It's kinda lame if you live in the school. Or maybe not, what with all the space." Leo bites into his pizza.

Connor laughs. "I think you can actually live here. Showers in the locker rooms? Food in the cafeteria?"

Everyone frowns at that. Leo stares at his cafeteria food.

"Let's _not_ eat from the cafe." Travis sticks out his tongue. "Here's Neko."

Leo's not sure _how_ , but he swears that Nico Di Angelo might be following him. Or maybe Leo's accidentally following _him_.

Nico stares at him suspiciously. "Valdez? Really?"

"He's totally cool." Travis puts that arm around his shoulder again. It's like there was velcro from that forearm to Leo's collarbone. "Senior coolness."

"Fine. I guess we have four people now. Let's do the ritual."

"What?" Leo did not want to do any type of ritual with a goth kid. Today was not the day he will be sacrificed.

Nico raises an eyebrow. "They didn't tell you? We need four people to call upon the corners of the Earth. To raise Satan."

Leo's eyes widen. "Seriously?"

Fuck no.

Connor and Travis nod. They look too serious for Leo. They've already arranged themselves in a circle. They all grab each other's hands, and Leo finds himself tied to Nico and Travis.

Nico pulls out a Swiss army knife and pulls up his sleeve. His arm is pale and translucent enough to see the blue veins run up and down. There's a cup in the middle of the circle. Nico turns to Leo. "You cut yourself, then drip the blood into the cup. Then we all drink all of our blood. It's part of the ritual."

"Uh," Leo swallows. "My mom told me when I was little, to never perform any satanic rituals on a school roof, so this is kind of against her dying wishes."

To his surprise, Nico laughs. And laughs. And _laughs_.

Connor grins at Leo. "We're just joking. We're not going to sacrifice you."

"Hope you bought underwear because the puddle in my pants isn't a joke." This makes Connor and Travis laugh too.

Someone plops down at their tiny circle. She's filled with crazy red hair and a million starry freckles. She sips a smoothie and nods at Leo. "Rachel Elizabeth Dare."

"Leo Valdez."

Travis and Connor fist bump next to him.

* * *

He's stuck watching Harley race up and down their street. Harley's bike needs a little air, but it rides as steadily as the kid can manage. Leo's sitting on the steps, executing skilled attacks with a flick of his stylus in the virtual world of his DS. No enemy can defeat him. Festus barks, as she chases Harley up and down.

He looks up when he hears the neighboring door open. It's not Piper, but instead, Drew. She's wearing running clothes, and her headphones are plugged in.

Harley skids to a sudden stop, waving a huge hello to Drew. The eight-year-old liked the girl, although Leo wasn't exactly sure why. Drew is... _Drew_.

"-he won't even let me go to the _park_!" Harley's whining, tugging at his helmet. "And he ties my helmet too tight. I think Leo secretly wants to kill me so he can have all my baseball cards."

Leo's offended, both at Harley and at the fact that his DS dies. "No one wants your dumb cards."

"You're just jealous." Harley blows a raspberry at Leo, before clinging to Drew. " _Please, please, please_ take me with you. And Festus, she needs to go and pee I think."

Drew's only a bit irritated as she begins jogging. "No singing. I don't do Disney."

"You don't do _anything_ ," Leo mumbles but follows after them. It's not like he wants to, it's just that Harley has zero balance or care for safety. He is _not_ going to be the one who tells Nyssa that Harley crashed into a tree.

"I don't get it," Harley's voice drifts back to Leo. He talks a lot. Rambling must run in the family. "I gave her a Ring Pop! And it was watermelon too!"

"Watermelon is terrible. Cherry is the best and only way to get into a girl's heart." Drew answers sharply.

" _Oh_."

Leo slows down his jog. He's near enough to hear parts of the other two's conversation but far enough to feel alone (except for his lovely companion, Festus, who loyally trots at his side. Festus is always welcome to join Leo whenever she wants, thank you very much.). They're heading towards the park, which makes Leo wish he brought something to do. He doubts the swing he broke has been fixed.

Harley drops his bike and rips off his helmet, just to run towards the monkey bars. Leo picks the bike up and leans it against the table Drew is texting at. Festus bounds off chasing a squirrel who is collecting nuts to get ready for the winter.

"So, uh-"

"Don't even think about it." Drew's glossed lips cut in. She smiles, and for a second, Leo thinks it's for him until he realizes she's snapping a picture of herself.

Drew is a really pretty person. Strong Japanese features (he's pretty sure she's Japanese), and nice round face with clear skin. Long dark hair currently in a ponytail, and perfectly waxed eyebrows. Her body is healthy and fit, and she's a bit shorter than Leo. Also, Drew has nice boobs, but that might be the perverted inner Leo persuading his lost eyes.

Drew's fingers tap across her phone rapidly. "Are you doing drugs?"

"What?" Leo thinks he's been saying this a lot as of recent. "Besides Adderall?"

"Not medicated drugs, dumbass," Drew puts her phone down. "Illegal ones. Are you doing them?"

"Your love is my drug, babe."

Drew's eyes narrow. "So you're not doing drugs, and you're definitely not partying, and you're not doing something cool. So what _have_ you been doing?"

"I can always make space in my schedule for you. Hold on, and let me call my secretary."

"Stop it, dork." Drew's phone vibrates and she picks it up. "It would be appreciated if you can deal with Piper. She's even more annoying when she's not with you."

Leo shrugs. "I talk to her all the time. And I thought you hated when I was over."

"I do. But my sister knocking on my door every ten minutes is even more irritating than you."

"Gee, no offense taken."

Drew tosses her long ponytail to her other shoulder. Festus drops a long stick by Leo's foot. "Whatever. Just fix whatever fight you're in, Valdez. Piper is thirsty, and thirsty for your glass of water."

"I like to think of myself as more of a small shot of vodka."

Drew glares.

* * *

Leo's fixing his alarm clock when he hears the rock hitting his window. He opens it, to see Piper sitting in the tree ready to climb in, and Jason aiming to throw a rock at Leo's head. It hits him sharply, and Leo staggers away.

Piper's climbing through the window, and Jason's quickly following.

"I didn't know you opened the window," Jason winces.

"Can't help it if even rocks want a piece of me," Leo shrugs, rubbing his head. His fingertips are stained red, and he can hear Piper rummaging through his bathroom.

"No wonder you pitch for baseball." Piper's slender fingers press a band-aid against Leo's temple. Leo's used to it- out of the three of them, he thinks he's the one who gets the most hurt.

"An accident, I swear," Jason looks apologetic, as he plops onto Leo's bed. "We just came to tell you about my football game. On Friday."

Jason plays running back, or goalie, or shooting guard or something really important. Really, the only reason why Leo has any interest (the tiniest) in sports is because it gives him more than an hour to just stare at Jason. He looks so alive and happy and free, and Leo wants to be a part of that.

"Yeah, no problem," Leo shrugs. "I'd totally support my bro out there."

"Cool," Jason thumps his knuckles against Leo's. He looks like he was actually worried that Leo would abandon them, which Leo would never do. "We're up against the SPQR Wolves, at their field."

SPQR is the only other high school in Leo's town. Considering they were the only ones in the nearby radius, the two schools had a strong and healthy rivalry. SPQR is fancier than Leo's school, instead of the t-shirts and jeans, SPQR brands their students with strict rules and neat uniforms. Leo only knows how organized it is, because Jason was at SPQR during their freshman year.

"Woo," Leo fist pumps. "Go horses!"

"We're the CHB Centaurs." Piper corrects with a laugh.

"Doesn't make it any less dumb." Leo snaps back.

"You're dumb."

"If _I'm_ dumb, then what are you?" Leo sticks out his tongue.

"Okay, okay, you're both pretty," Jason pulls out his phone. "Are you hungry? Me and Piper were getting food."

Leo's already had dinner, which Piper should know, considering he had it with Drew and Harley on the way back from the park. They had sandwiches and fancy mineral water.

"I can get down for some shakes," Leo says.

They end up sitting in the back of McDonald's next to the bathroom. It's so gross but it makes them all giggle stupidly.

When Piper excuses herself, Leo steals her fries.

"Hey, Leo."

"Yeah?"

Jason slides his phone across the table. "My dad's running for mayor again. He's sent me a text about it."

Leo skims through the conversation between father and son. It's mostly a bunch of info about the process, and his father's schedule for next year. Jason only really says either 'Yes, Father.' or 'That is fine.'

"Cool," Leo slurps loudly and pushes back the device, "let our voices be heard. And since you're his mini-me, he should listen super close to you."

Jason stares at Leo for a long time, before slipping his phone back into his pocket. "Yeah. Let our voices be heard."

Leo thinks he gets it. He knows how distant Jason's dad is, how uninvolved he is, how important he is. Leo also gets that Jason's dad is important to him- Jason _strives_ for his attention. His dad isn't a bad man, he just is important and busy. He drowned himself with work after Jason's mother died in a car accident.

Leo thinks he gets it because Leo's own father is absent. Leo actually doesn't remember the last genuine conversation they shared. Leo's only seen flickers of the man, and that's okay. It's all he's used to so he's not expecting much from him in the future. Besides Leo has his siblings, and that's more than Jason has.

Leo also gets why Jason brings it up without Piper. Piper _has_ a dad, a dad who cares for her and sends his love all the time. Piper is happy for her father, just as much as he is for her. Piper can't relate, in a way that Leo can. The feeling sends moths into his gut, in an unpleasant way.

He doesn't want to bond over MIA fathers.

"So like, dude," Leo starts, "what colleges are you applying for?"

Jason rolls his eyes and nibbles on a fry. "I don't know. I want to stay close to you guys. Wasn't our plan to go to New Rome together?"

Leo distinctly remembers this. All three of them had wanted to go to New Rome together because it was within distance of other colleges that any of them wanted to go to. There was affordable housing, and a great neighborhood that would be perfect for the three friends. Abso-freaking-lutely perfect.

If he has to be honest with himself, Leo has no clue what he wants to do with his life. He currently doesn't have any remarkable talents or hobbies. All he really does is hang out with Jason and Piper, play video games, and sleep. Huh. He's kind of pathetic.

"Yeah. It was. Is." Leo says.

Jason nods absentmindedly. He stares out the dark window. "I think I want to major in aviation. There's a program a mile from NR, it's not that far."

Leo bites his straw. "Fancy? You gonna fly a plane?"

"Yeah. I think so."

Leo leans back in his seat and crosses his arms behind his head. He nods towards Piper, who's sliding in next to Jason again. "I dunno, man. What _is_ the great Valdez going to be doing next year?"

Piper rolls her eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"College." Jason fills her in, quickly.

Piper yawns. "New Rome, right?"

"Definitely." Jason nods, and Piper kisses his cheek.

Leo shrugs. He's not sure about New Rome (and he doesn't think he ever was), but he's not going to say that. "Totally."

"Great." Piper pokes her cold burger. "More years of the Wonder trio, being together."

Leo's useless comic book knowledge reminds him that it's the Wonder Duo, Batman and Robin. Duo, not a trio, two not three. It's Batman and Robin, not Batman and Robin and Alfred the butler.

"More years of the Wonder trio." Jason echoes with a smile.

Leo snorts. "More years of suffering." A deep and dark small part of him isn't joking, and it scares him a bit.

Piper burps loudly, and Jason laughs so hard that soda comes out his nose.


	6. y

**y**

The funny thing is, Leo doesn't sit with Connor, or Travis, or Nico, or Rachel for the rest of the week. Except for the casual glances thrown across classrooms, Leo actually doesn't see them after that. He spends his lunches with Piper and Jason, at the usual table, in the usual spot.

On Friday, he ends up buying chili and cheese nachos, candy, and a huge cup of root beer. He sees Piper cheering loudly, as she stands up with the crowd.

"'Scuse me," Leo slides through the people. Piper moves over to make room for him.

"Are those nachos? Nice." She snags a few chips, and drinks from one of the two straws in the cup.

Leo chews decidedly, scanning the field for Jason. He knows Jason's number is number 4, and the bright orange of it should be somewhere in the mass of black. CHB's school colors are orange and black which are utterly disgusting, compared to SPQR's purple.

He spots Jason, among the line of his teammates, and waves at him while yelling the "GO CENTAURS!" anthem with the rest of the bleachers. Jason's head spins towards Leo and Piper, giving a wink before turning back to the game.

Leo's heart beats so fast and his stomach clenches and his blood rushes-

"He winked at me," Piper mumbles under her breath. "What a big dummy, who needs to focus on the _game-"_

"-Hey." Leo nudges her. "I think our team just got a slam dunk."

Piper smirks. "This isn't basketball."

" _Sorry_ ," Leo rolls his eyes. "Way to hurt the person who doesn't even _like_ sports. Guess we got a home run then. Nice."

"It's not baseball either-" Piper interrupts herself, by jumping up to cheer for the points that are newly earned. Leo is yanked up, and then shoved back down faster than he can swallow his food. The root beer splashes all over his t-shirt. "- it's football, Leo. Hey, what happened to your shirt?"

Leo shrugs. " _You_ happened, Piper McLean. I'm gonna go to the bathroom to clean it up. Want anything? Toilet paper, spit-looking soap, urinary cakes? You'll be amazed by what you can find."

"Just go." Piper takes the food from him and shoves him away.

SPQR is a kinda big school. It's sleek with freshly cleaned floors and shiny black lockers. The windows are all floor to ceiling and are without any smudges. All the pictures of previous classes and graduations are hung neatly, and the lights are bright and clear.

Leo gets lost like an idiot. He's pretty sure this school was made for dumb kids like him to never be able to get where they need to go.

He hears splashing and a whistle, so he follows that. He's lead to a gigantic pool, and a couple of teens in swimsuits. They're all so concentrated on the race, that Leo doubts they even notice him.

"Hey. You're not supposed to be here."

Leo blinks at the giant who stares down at him. The Asian boy has chubby cheeks, and zero facial or body hair. His hair is spiky and wet, and his cheeks are flushed. Leo's face burns because _OhMyGoshHe'sKindOfCuteButNotInATotalHottieWayThatWouldHaveLeoQuiveringAtTheKneesButCuteEnoughToMakeLeoBlush_.

Yeah.

These thoughts startle Leo because he doesn't normally think guys are cute. He only thought Jason Grace is hot, and so far Jason Grace has been the only guy Leo has ever looked at in a less platonic way. Until now, that is. But even if this guy is kinda cute, Leo still is in love with Jason. He doesn't know when he will ever _not_ be in love with Jason, but it's not going to happen soon.

"Uh, hello?" The teenager waves his hand in front of Leo's face.

"Sorry, dude," Leo recovers rather smoothly. "Just got totally lost looking at that girl over there. You know her, uh, buddy?"

"Frank." Frank's arms fold. "And yeah, I do. Hazel's my girlfriend."

Leo winces, because this conversation is taking such a wrong turn that he's contemplating whether Frank's arms are actually huge muscles to strangle Leo or just fat to smother Leo. Neither option seems like a preferable way for Leo to get his ass kicked. He holds his hands up in a surrendering position. "Whoa, sorry man, no need to intrude. I don't want your girl or anything."

Frank looks less like he's going to punch Leo, as he relaxes. He still looks suspicious. "You're still not supposed to be here. Swim team only. What's your name again?"

There's a yell from across the pool. "Zhang! Where are you? Backstroke?"

"Leo. Leo Valdez." Leo glances at who he thinks is the coach and his kid. The teen and the older man look alike, and both have slightly stormy faces. "Uh, gotta go now, nice meeting you-"

"Hey, man!" Leo finds himself facing a naked chest. "Where you going? Wanna join the team? Pizza every Friday."

The coach looks warm and opening now that he's smiling. He's wearing a Hawaiian shirt and Bermuda shorts. "Percy, give the boy space. Frank, get back in the water, we still need to work on our times. Leo, was it? Clean your shirt up, it smells like soda."

Leo gets whisked around, and there's a wet arm around his shoulder. This feels sickeningly familiar. All he's gathered is that he's being moved towards the sign that reads BOYS LOCKER ROOM, by some guy named Percy. Or it might've been Perry. Perry sounds more reasonable.

In the bathroom, there are about a million stalls, and the walls don't have the usual Sharpie messages on them. It actually smells _good_ in here, which is different from what Leo's used to.

Perry's pulling out paper towels, and it's then Leo realizes that he's been talking to Leo the entire time. "-think you have the body to do breaststroke. Personally, I prefer freestyle or butterfly, but you seem like a breaststroke type of person. What do you think?"

"Uh, yeah sure. Titty stroke it is."

Perry laughs really hard. He wipes away a tear and runs the paper under water. "Ha, _titty stroke_. Annabeth would love that one. You're Leo, right? Heard your conversation with ol' Frank."

"Yeah." Leo dabs the wet napkins on his shirt. There was really no point because the shirt is already too stained to fix. Now he just has a bigger wet spot that clings to his torso. "Perry?"

"Percy." Percy corrects with a shrug. "Don't worry about it, I get Perry all the time. For an entire school year, I was once called Perry Johnson. Which reminds me, do you go to SPQR? I haven't seen you around."

"Nah, too pretentious and fancy for me. CHB."

Percy chuckles and runs a hand through his hair. Leo becomes more aware of the fact that Percy is _half naked_ and is _very_ easy on the eyes. Leo's early revelation on attractive males hits him like a bulldozer. "I used to go to CHB. I actually started here, this year. CHB was the _best,_ no offense SPQR."

Leo shrugs, "I guess. I'm kind of living the life, my best friends are beautiful and smart. Jason is normally the star of everything. Piper's friendly, and everyone loves her."

"Hmm," Percy taps his chin. "You wouldn't happen to be talking about Jason Grace, would you?"

"Yeah, you know him?"

"I think I've seen his name around here. I would have to ask Reyna, she knows everyone who's walked in and out of these doors." Percy waves his hand for Leo to follow him through rows of lockers. They stop in front of a blue locker, and Percy fiddles with the dial.

"I know Jay went here his freshman year. Came back all high and mighty on his high horse." Leo rolls his eyes at past Jason.

"Well, it might not seem like it, but SPQR is like a family. As strict and rigid as everything is, I still kind of like it here." Percy fishes out a blue hoodie and tosses it at Leo. "Strip, and put this on. If you keep your shirt on, you'll get sick."

Leo doesn't want to take off his shirt, just so the godlike Percy would see his weak arms and frail body. He takes it off anyway because Leo gets the vibe that Percy isn't one to judge. The hoodie is warm and a bit big, and when Leo zips it up, he can feel the cold metal of the zipper in the middle of his body.

"Cool." Percy shoots a thumbs up. "Are you going to watch our practices? I think our team is getting really good lately, and I'm so pumped for regionals!"

"Are you the captain, or something?" Leo almost backs away because Percy is literally swirling with positive energy and excitement.

Percy inflates a little. "Er, no. Newbies can't be captain, even if everyone thinks they _are_ that good. My dad is the new coach though, and if I was at SPQR last year, he said I would totally be the captain right now."

Leo doesn't even bother with the fact that it's definitely biased that the coach being Percy's _dad_ would make Percy captain. Honestly, being with the other teen is making _Leo_ hyped up. He sort of actually wants to watch the swim team practice to see if they're as good as they claim to be.

Percy takes them back to the pool and makes Leo sit on the bench. He runs (and nearly slips twice) up to the coach, and whispers in his ear. The man gives out a big and deep laugh.

"Alright, guys! We have a kid from our sister school, CHB, and we want to impress him! 200 Medley Relay, Go!"

There's splashing as bodies dive into the water. Cheering comes from the males waiting for their turn, and the ones sitting on the benches like Leo.

Percy winks at Leo from the back of the line, as he snaps on his swim cap. Leo thinks he sees Frank swimming beautifully through the water. He can appreciate swimming.

When it comes to Percy's turn, he is a literal _beast_. Leo's pretty sure that Percy is the reverse version of the Little Mermaid because there is no way legs can move so fast. He accepts this theory as the truth, and that Percy's mother is in fact, Ariel from the Little Mermaid.

Percy's team wins by a mile. It takes seconds for other teams to come back in. It's so interesting, that Leo is fine with watching the other races that follow. He wishes that he could swim that good, rather than his average flopping around like a fish out of water. Maybe he should take some swimming lessons.

"You were good, man," Percy slaps Frank on the back. Frank flushes at the wet slap that leaves a red palm on his body. "Sucks we weren't on the same team."

"Yeah," Frank nods. "You did nicely too." He turns to pay attention to the small girl running up to him. Leo recognizes her as Hazel, thanks to his slip up earlier.

Percy watches them with a small smile, before turning back to Leo. He scratches at the back of his head sheepishly. "Young love, am I right? Man, I wish Annabeth was here to see my practices. You have a girl of your own?"

"Nah," Leo swallows. "Haven't found the right one." Leo's not _entirely_ lying, but he's not going to say anything to Percy. He also briefly wonders if Annabeth is the same 'Annabeth' from his Stats class. Out of all the people, he did _not_ think Annabeth would be in some kind of relationship. No offense, of course.

"Don't worry, you'll find someone." Percy snatches a towel from beside Leo. It has the orange fish from _Finding Nemo_ on it. "What'd you think of the races? Pretty cool, huh?"

"They were good. I wouldn't mind seeing more." Leo says truthfully.

Percy glances at the clock on the wall. "Yikes, I guess I missed the football game. I was hoping to catch a small piece of the ending, just to see who wins."

Leo stares at the clock, as the numbers grow clear to him. He completely missed the entire second half. He hopes Jason wasn't benched, or worse.

Leo jumps up with his wet shirt, and darts towards the exit. Percy calls out to him. "Hey, see you around, right?"

Leo yells out some kind of an agreement and only hopes that a, nothing happened in his leave and b, Percy heard him.

* * *

Piper's wearing Jason's letterman jacket and has his arm circling her waist. Even though he shouldn't, Leo nearly stops running and catches himself before he falls on his face.

The duo's laughter stops when they're standing in front of Leo.

"Where were you, man?" Jason is both worried and annoyed. His forehead creases, and the little scar on his lip goes down.

Leo holds up his t-shirt. "Some soda spilled, and I had to clean it."

Jason scowls. "That takes 5 minutes Leo, not 50. This game was important to me."

"Listen, Jay, I totally get that," Leo's not sure how to explain that he missed his best friend's game for a swim meet for some kid he just met, for a team Leo's not even on, for a sport Leo never really cared about until now. "I got lost, and this really cool swim thing was going on-"

"Whose sweater is that?" Piper squints at Leo. She gasps. "You have a girlfriend, that you didn't tell us about?"

" _What_? No." The thought nearly makes him laugh. On another note, Leo has to return the sweater back to Percy somehow. "I was just watching the swim club."

"You don't even like swimming. Hell, you don't like sports at all!" Jason throws his hands in the air. He stares at Leo. "Dude, I get it if you don't want to come to all my games. But at least _tell_ me, so I don't have to feel like I'm dragging you into stuff you don't want to do."

"That's not it." There's a gnawing at Leo's stomach. He doesn't want miscommunication with his best friends because that's not something he can deal with. "I got lost-"

"Leo, it's okay." Piper rests a hand on his shoulder. "We get it. Just say next time, when you don't want to come."

"Okay," Leo sighs. He's done with this then. "I'll say something."

Jason swings an arm around Leo's neck. The whole arm-around-neck is happening fairly a lot in his life now. Jason's golden arm hair tickles Leo's cheek. "I'm not mad anymore. We all have different likes."

Leo nods. "Okay."

Piper rubs a hand on Leo's arm. "It's okay, Leo."

Yeah. Right. Because everything's okay.

Yeah.


	7. o (2)

**o**

Honestly, Leo is a bit tired of sitting with Piper and Jason. It seems that coming back from the weekend, meant that Piper and Jason were even closer than two sardines in a can.

Apparently, it must've happened on Sunday, because Leo was with them for the entirety of Saturday, which was spent playing video games and watching viral videos. Sunday, Leo went home and slept away half of his life.

He felt so energetic in the morning, that Nyssa wanted him to check if he took his Adderall again, even though he's pretty sure that is _not_ how it works. But now, he feels like he wants to slump over and glue his eyes shut.

Leo stabs his fork into Mystery Meat instead.

Between Piper's messy hair and Jason's neat strands opposite of Leo, Leo can see the Drew standing in the heat of an argument. Her face is a bit red, and she's screaming hoarsely at someone. Leo likes how her pink shirt fits on her, because she's still pretty even if she's yelling. He doesn't think she would cry, because he could never picture Drew Tanaka crying.

Piper gives out a roar of a laugh, and Leo filters back into the conversation.

"-hate History." Jason groans. "My dad is going to kill me, then bring me to life, then kill me again."

"I _wish_ I had a B in History." Piper says wistfully. "Can't you bring it up?"

"Not sure," Jason sips from his water bottle. "What are you doing for Thanksgiving?"

Out of the corner of his eye, Leo sees a flash of caramel hair. He follows it, until he sees the slightly familiar form of Calypso. And she's staring straight at him.

Leo blinks. He's never been openly stared at like this. He's always been the one staring at people, whether it's longing at crushes to analyzing strangers. Leo's actually interested in knowing if this girl is insane. Who would stare at Leo Valdez? He's nothing special.

Maybe she's staring at Jason. Everyone likes Jason. Or maybe Piper? Leo's no stranger to seeing girls envy his best friend. But no- when Leo looks up again, Calypso's eyes are still boring into him.

He's actually really interested in talking to her now. He gets ready to stand up, when he feels a hand on his shoulder. Whatever Piper and Jason are talking about stops, as they stare up at Leo and the arm connected to him.

"Hey, man." Connor stares at Leo with a smile. "Can I borrow you?"

"Uh-"

"Can I borrow Leo? He has all the notes I missed last week." Connor turns to the two sitting down. He's got this apologetic look, like he's sorry to steal Leo from what must be the time of his life. "It's Spanish, and I'm nearly failing."

Piper's looking him up and down, as to generate an opinion of him. Jason looks like he understands Connor's woes, even though Grace probably has an A in every class except quite possibly that one B in History.

"Yeah, no problem man." Leo picks up his trash. He wasn't hungry anyway. "Gotta warn you, my handwriting is crap."

"Total crap," Piper supplies.

Connor laughs. "I'm used to bad handwriting, trust me."

With all the time hanging around Jason Grace, Leo's sense of guilt has increased. Before, he could break a window with a baseball and not feel the least bit sorry, but now if Leo didn't even have a pencil to offer someone in need he would feel a bit bad.

He suddenly feels only the tiniest sense of guilt when Connor whisks him away. The tiniest.

* * *

"Okay, dude." Leo yanks back his hand and takes a step back. "You've been in school every day. Why'd you do that?"

Connor shrugs. "Um, 'cause you looked like you were dying out there? Cause you were definitely waiting for a reason to leave anyway? I totally get it."

"I wasn't," Leo tries to defend himself, even though Connor is half right. He didn't think he was dying, but Leo _was_ debating on a way to leave. But just to talk to Calypso. A suitable reason to leave. "They're my friends."

Connor gives him the most strangest look for a long time.

"Right," Connor finally mutters. He smiles. "So, how was your day?"

Leo rolls his eyes. "Where are you taking me? If you're going to try to rape me, I warn you, I know karate. _Ka-ra-teh._ "

Connor holds up his hands in a defensive position. "Try me."

Leo mimics his movements with a slowly spreading grin. "Alright, prepare yourself for my special move. It's left armies abolished, and Bruce Lee quivering."

"I'm ready for anything you'll hit me with." Connor nods, as Leo's hand comes flying in slow motion.

"You look dumb." Nico Di Angelo's next to the lockers, as he stares at the two boys who are fighting in slow motion.

Leo feels oddly embarrassed in front of this lowerclassman but pretends like he has no shame. "You're just jealous you're not on our level."

"How is your head? Does it hurt from your stupidity?"

"Hey! I'm not stupid." Leo folds his arms. He didn't have to stand here and get bullied by a bunch of kids. He could march his way back to the cafeteria and sit with his friends. Maybe find Calypso if she's still there.

"It's a joke," Nico frowns. "I know that you're smart."

"Oh," Leo blinks. "Okay. Cool. Gotcha. Nice. Great. _Bien_."

Connor pulls on his arm. " _Okay_ , we get it. Lunch is almost over now. We're going to see a movie, want to come? Travis is already hiding snacks in his coat. Screw those movie prices."

"Don't you kids have class or something? I have a free period, but do you?" Leo already knows the answer.

"Course not, we have Bio next," Connor shrugs. "But it's the _Mythomagic_ remake. The actual best thing you will ever see in your life. Excluding the original, of course."

"The original is great," Nico adds helpfully. "A cinematic classic."

Connor spins towards him. "You just say that because you're a total nerd stuck in the fandom that won't let go. It's really sad actually."

"Shut up."

Connor links arms with Leo. "Anyway, it's going to be great. Explosions, monsters, sexy ladies, what else could you want? It's not like you have anything else to do."

True. Leo didn't have anything planned, except maybe sleeping on one of the benches outside of the school until his next class. He doesn't like his schedule- the lunch, a free period, and then coming back for two more classes, has and always will be stupid. At first, he was lucky to share the free period with Jason and Piper. Now, apparently, he's lucky enough to be able to see a movie with a bunch of teens he barely knows.

"Yeah sure," Leo throws his hands in the air. "I haven't done something cool in weeks."

"Awesome," Connor grins, and Nico gives the smallest hint of a smirk.

* * *

If there's something amazing and simultaneously terrible about Harley, it's the fact that he's stubborn and doesn't give up. Also, he could probably pick Leo up and throw him over his back like a sack of potatoes. The kid is crazy strong, it's really scary sometimes.

"It's not that hard," Leo presses buttons on his phone. "I did that stuff when I was like 3."

"But I _hate_ math." Harley whines, pressing his face into Leo's side. His voice is muffled by cotton. "Math is so dumb, and you're like a _genius_. I'm dumb."

"Don't say that," Leo scowls at his grainy screen. Tetris is one of the only games he has, and he's pretty good at it too, except it's a bit hard to play with a child pushing himself into Leo's body. "Math is fun. I love it. You'll love it."

"No, I _woooo'nt_." Both Leo and Harley know that if he keeps it up, Leo would do the homework for him. But not today. Today is the day Leo will beat his high score. "Math is so useless."

"No, it's not. You need it for stuff."

A pause. "Like what?"

Leo pauses his game and sighs. "What do you want to be when you grow up?"

"Indiana Jones."

"You can't be Indiana Jones if Indiana Jones is Indiana Jones. Duh."

"Oh." Harley stares at Leo and scrunches his face up. "I'll be Leo then."

"I'm Leo."

"No, _I'm_ Leo," Harley says in a matter-of-factly voice. He then folds his arms and pulls the hood of his sweatshirt up. "I'm Leo and I sleep all day and eat other people's chicken nuggets. Sometimes I dance in the shower and listen to _ABBA_ even though my little brother Harley doesn't even want to be the _Dancing Queen_. And I also like my friends a lot and math, even though math is dumb. Also, I like eating other people's chicken nuggets."

"I do _not_ sound like that." Leo pauses and pushes Harley's head away from him. "To be fair, any chicken nuggets in the fridge is free territory. Maybe you should've put your name on them."

Harley punches Leo, and it hurts _a lot_. "One day, you're going to come home and find all your pizza rolls gone."

" _You wouldn't_." Leo stares into his brother's eyes. He doesn't know where this evil is coming from, because there's no way this could be his brother. His brother would never do such a horrible thing.

" _I would_." Harley's won this match. He suddenly deflates of pride when he looks down at his worksheet. " _Leo_ , help me with this, _pleasssse_?"

"I don't help pizza roll thieves. It's against my moral code to help villains like you."

"But I triple dog- _dare_ you to help me with this!" Harley's insistent, and he's shaking Leo's arm with both hands. "And you can't _not_ do a triple-dog-dare!"

"Well shoot," Leo stares blankly at Harley. "You sure got me there."

" _Leooooooo_ ," Harley presses his hand into Leo's face. "Help me-"

"Stop distracting him from his homework." Nyssa cuts in with a sharp tongue. She has apples in her hands, which she tosses one to each boy. Harley nearly jumps over the coffee table to catch it. "Jason's here. Wasn't sure whether to let him in or not."

"Don't you always?" Leo's confused, as Nyssa collapses down next to Harley.

She looks exhausted, as she ties her hair back. "Yeah. But I wasn't- You normally- just go answer the door, please? It's rude to leave someone out there."

"Then why'd you leave him out there?" Leo mutters, dragging his feet to the door, unlocking it.

"I heard that," One of the couch pillows comes flying at Leo with scary accuracy that knocks him in the head. Harley's laughter follows the impact.

"May I come in?" Jason's arm is bent at the doorway, and Leo feels like a girl being asked out on a date, as his heart jumps in his throat.

Leo bites into his apple and tucks the pillow under his armpit. "I don't know, _may_ you?"

"Leo, let me in. It's cold, and I'm not wearing socks." Jason rubs his hands together and stuffs them in his jacket.

Leo glances down at his own hoodie, boxers, and socks. "I'm not cold."

"Yeah, but you're _you_. Come on, I'm not wearing _socks_." Jason raises his eyebrows as if the word _socks_ is a code word that Leo should know. News flash, because he _doesn't_ know _._

It's probably some joke Jason and Piper had cuddling together. _Jesus_.

"Leo, you're letting the cold air in!" Nyssa yells at him.

Leo steps aside to let Jason in. "Door's always open for you, man."

"Whew," Jason takes off his shoes and jacket. He's really wearing no socks but also a short sleeved t-shirt. It's tight at the chest. "Thought you were going to leave me out there forever."

"It's November." Leo points out. "You're a pussy in the cold."

" _Language!_ "

" _Nyssa!"_

Jason sniffs the air. "Smells good. Spaghetti?"

"I don't know." Leo's walking to the living room, to throw the pillow back at Nyssa. "Are you staying for dinner?"

"If it's spaghetti, yes." Jason's looking at the female for confirmation. She nods, before continuing with helping Harley with his math. "I love your family's food."

Leo drags Jason away from his siblings, and up the stairs to his room. "Yeah, yeah, we _all_ know about your freeloader habits. The whole goodie-goodie thing is just an act to get free stuff."

"Guilty as charged." Jason holds his hands up in surrender. "That's exactly the only reason why I act like this. To get free food."

Leo falls onto his bed, with a chomp of apple. "That's the only reason why I would do it."

"That's why I'm me, and you are you," Jason says. He drops down on the floor with his legs crossed. "Your room needs to be cleaned."

"No, it doesn't," Leo says. "You're just a neat freak."

"Hence why it physically pains me to be in here," Jason complains. He shifts closer to the bed and folds his arms on top of the mattress. "Who was that kid earlier?"

"What kid?" Leo sits up. "You would think after all these years, you would remember Harley is related to me and here to stay."

"Harley?" Jason's confused as he drops his head on his arms. "What, no. I meant at lunch. Y'know?"

"Oh, yeah. _Him_." Leo shrugs. "Just a friend I guess."

"A friend," Jason repeats. He scrambles to get on the bed next to Leo. "Didn't know you had so many friends beside us. Do tell."

"Jeez, Jay," Leo slides a little further away from Jason. Jason's actually a bit hurtful with his words. What does that even mean? ' _Didn't know you had so many friends beside us_.' Is Jason saying Leo didn't have any friends? "You sound crazy possessive."

"Ha," Jason leans forward. "You're just my best friend, y'know? I trust you. It's just weird that you've never mentioned any of these people before, that's all."

Leo frowns. "Dude, I don't tell Piper everything either. It's cool to keep secrets from people."

"Hmm," Jason leans back on his palms. His fitted shirt has a Captain America shield on it. Muscles and pectorals galore. Leo would be swooning if he wasn't so irritated with his friend. He could totally keep secrets (that weren't even much of a secret in the first place) from best friends. Leo's pretty sure both Jason and Piper has stuff that they don't tell Leo about. He's not going to disrupt other people's personal boundaries like that.

Leo sighs and collapses backward, hand over his eyes, squeezing his half-eaten apple tightly. He's so tired of all this friendship stuff. Why couldn't people just work the way Leo wanted? In the far future, he would definitely program people to make his life easier.

Jason speaks again. "I think I'm going to get a tattoo."

"What the hell?" Leo snorts. "It better be a tramp stamp with my name on it."

"Maybe," Jason teases. "I _am_ eighteen, so I can get one myself."

" _Dope_ as fuck, dude." Leo sits up, and stares at Jason. "Where are you getting it?"

"I think on my back. Maybe my arm." Jason takes his shirt off, much to Leo's pleasure. He twists to show Leo his back and rubs near his right shoulder. "I'm thinking here."

Leo crawls closer and touches the skin. It's warm and smooth. He pushes the area with his index and middle finger. "Here is pretty good Mr. Fit & Muscled. Where on your arm?"

Jason turns back around and pushes his forearm out. "Somewhere along here. It's going to be the SPQR initials."

Leo sticks out his tongue. "SPQR? Like the school? You traitor."

"Like the Romans." Jason hesitates. "Yeah, I guess like the school to some extent. It's going to have an eagle, but I'm still deciding if to put a date or something."

"Sounds tough, though," Leo smirks. "Hope Piper doesn't get jealous with all the ladies who are going to go ga-ga over you."

"As if," Jason scoffs. "Speaking of, got an eye on someone? Prom's in a couple of months."

There is no way in hell Leo can answer that to Jason truthfully. Jason's still shirtless and sitting on Leo's bed with jeans lazily strewn on. As a teenage boy in a small town, who is very much in love with his male best friend who is very much in a relationship with a girl, this casual question may or may not be a death sentence for him. Leo shrugs, ignoring his sweaty palms. "Nah, no one in particular."

" _Really_?" Jason raises an eyebrow. "Huh."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Leo's actually the slight bit offended by the ' _Huh_.'

"Nothing." Jason pulls his shirt back on. "Just a bit surprised is all."

"Are you accusing me of being a man slut?" Leo puts his hands on his hips, even though the effect is lost with him sitting down. "Slut shaming is _so_ not cool."

" _No_." Jason frowns. "Just leave it alone, man."

"You can't exactly make a statement without explaining it, Jay." Leo runs a hand through his hair. "It's kinda the cliffhanger of words. _So_ not cool. It's like today is your uncool day or somethin'."

Jason's ready to say something when they hear Nyssa's call about dinner. Leo's only slightly disappointed.

* * *

Normally, eating dinner with the rest of his family is a loud thing. Harley's always talking about school, Nyssa asks probing questions, and Jake's always talking about his day at the shop. Most of the time the conversations are in Spanish, except for the occasional words that Harley doesn't know, and Jake's fumbling because he can't quite roll his r's.

"How's school, Jason?" Nyssa asks politely in English, even as she's glaring at Leo. Leo winces- he totally needs to fix his grades even though he's _supposed_ to be a relaxed and lazy senior. But Nyssa would never stop the nagging if he didn't put an effort.

Jason passes the salad to Leo at his right. "Uh, good. Good grades and the team did great this season. I'm waiting for basketball tryouts any day now."

"That's nice." Nyssa notes. "If only _someone_ would be as active as you instead of playing video games and sleeping around here. And stop feeding Festus at the table."

Leo points his fork at her. "Why are you verbally attacking me? At least I wash the dishes."

" _That's all you do."_ Jake snorts. His Spanish is unexpected but is taken warmly. _"Maybe you should get a job_."

"What's he saying?" Jason nudges Leo discreetly. Leo ignores him, chewing slowly. To his right, Festus is steadily accepting secret meatballs and lettuce.

" _I think the arcade is offering some jobs,_ " Leo mumbles. " _I guess I can pick up some minimum wage and bad pizza there_."

" _Better than what you do now,"_ Nyssa admits.

"Does that mean free pizza?" Harley's so pumped he shouts in English. "Free pizza! Free tickets! Free tokens!"

"Hell no." Leo rolls his eyes. "You think if I get that stuff for free, I'm giving it to you? I'm aiming for that gigantic hamster ball for 2 million tickets, and you are not slowing me down."

"Aw, Nyssa!" Harley whines. "Tell Leo to share!"

"Leo, share."

Harley sticks his tongue out, to which Leo does the same notion back at him.

"What are you talking about?" Jason whispers, and Leo shrugs at him.

"Anyway, Jason, how is your family? I hear your father's running for mayor." Nyssa continues, ignoring the kicking match between Harley and Leo under the table. Jason stiffens.

"He should get his car checked out, too." Jake helpfully supplies. "I can work on the paint job a bit, and give another oil change."

"He's stressed, I guess." Jason's face is blank. "Campaigning is hard, sometimes."

Leo can tell it's awkward for Jason. So as a good friend, he fakes a wince and screams: " _Harley, what the fuck! Don't kick me!_ _Do you think I don't need my legs?!"_ Festus barks at the noise.

" _Leo, watch your language!"_ Nyssa's glaring lasers at Leo. If she actually had lasers, Leo would be toasted and crispy.

" _Sorry_." Leo grunts when Festus jumps on his lap. Jeez, maybe he _should_ stop feeding her at the dinner table.

Jason's not paying attention at this point. His phone had vibrated when Festus barked, and he's checking his messages. Being the concerned (nosy) friend he is, Leo stares at the screen from the corner of his eyes.

 **BABE:** Hey, you coming over?

 **ME:** I'm at Leo's.

 **ME:** Don't understand half of the conversation at this point.

 **BABE:** That's the usual.

 **BABE:** Chaotic good.

 **ME:** Yeah, it's nice I guess.

 **ME:** Better than eating take out alone.

"Leo, can you pass the salt?" Jake asks.

"Nyssa's food is salty enough." Leo just wants payback for the verbal attack from earlier. He pushes the salt over and scratches at Festus' back. "It's like her saltiness spilled over into the pot."

"I guess you have no problem with making dinner tomorrow, then." Nyssa's only a tiny bit offended. Everyone in the family knew she didn't particularly like cooking.

"That's cool, I can cook okay."

"Yeah!" Harley crows. "Leo's food is great! Except for his ravioli! Ew!"

"Harley," Jake changes the topic quickly before Leo gives a speech on his cooking. "Tell us about your day."

Leo eyes Jason's phone, seeing the blond still typing. He's a bit annoyed that he missed part of the conversation Jason was having.

 **ME:** I'll come over if you want.

 **ME:** Is Drew there?

 **BABE:** Actually, no

 **BABE:** She went out

 **BABE:** Somewhere

 **BABE:** I think she's staying at some friend's house

 **BABE:** We have the whole place to ourselves

 **ME:** Nice.

 **ME:** What do you have planned then?

 **ME:** Should I invite Leo?

 **BABE:** Whoa, didn't know you were into threesomes

 **BABE:** Another interesting chapter to Jason Grace

 **ME:** I thought it was just a movie and cuddles

 **BABE:** You want a picture?

 **BABE:** Because I think this is just for you tonight

Leo looks away, when he sees Jason's finger hovering over the picture that's sent. He's _so_ not interested in seeing Piper in whatever risque picture she sent. From the way Jason's cheeks burn, and he shifts in his chair, Leo's glad he missed it.

 **ME:** Wow

 **BABE:** ;)

 **ME:** I'm coming.

 **BABE:** Are you Jason Grace?

 **ME:** PIPER JEEZ

 **BABE:** I'll be waiting ;)

 **ME:** Be there in 5 mins.

Jason's head shoots up, and he clears his throat. "Sorry guys, my dad just texted me. Said he needs me home in a few minutes."

Liar. The word catches itself in Leo's throat.

"Alright," Jake says. "Nice seeing you after such a long time."

"Thank you," Jason's quick to head to the door to pull on his jacket and shoes. Leo guesses he would too if he were to ditch his best friend just to get laid. "Night guys! See you in school, Leo."

When the door closes, Leo feels cold and frustrated. He's miffed that Jason would leave him for what he assumes might be sex. Granted, it _is_ with Piper, so Leo shouldn't feel too offended. Piper's a good friend, a _best_ friend. Except, Leo's _super_ offended.

He stands up, knocking his plate. "I'm really tired right now. I'll do the dishes in the morning, promise."

He runs up the stairs, ignoring whatever protests or good nights follow after him. Festus bounds up the stairs, and Leo locks the door behind her. She hops onto the foot of Leo's bed.

"It's just me and you, buddy," Leo mumbles into Festus' fur. "You won't leave me, right?"

Festus grumbles lowly, and pants. Under the dim glow stars, Festus' golden fur looks sick and dull.

"That's what I thought." Leo sniffs. He's so weak, he should _not_ be crying. There's nothing to be crying about in the first place, friends do what friends do. He can't change Jason and his priorities. "Man's best friend, eh?"

Festus only whimpers. Leo sobs.


	8. u

**u**

When Leo knocks on the door, he's greeted with a red-nosed Drew. Her eyes are red, and her nose is running. Drew stares at Leo, almost as confused as Leo is.

"Piper's not here." Drew sniffs. "She said she was going out with a friend? I thought you and Jason were her only friends."

"Uh," Leo so eloquently says. He wasn't expecting this.

"Goodbye," Drew rolls her eyes and shoves the door closed. Leo blinks at the wood.

He's not sure why he does it, but he knocks again. Drew is obviously ignoring him, so he keeps knocking. Even rings the doorbell a few times, but decides it's nothing compared to the fury he can take out on this big piece of wood.

"Jesus," Drew glares, when she yanks the door open. "Have you ever heard of giving up?"

"Were you crying?" Leo says instead, pushing the door a bit more open. "Were you?"

"Since when do I cry?" Drew folds her arms. Her shirt is very much wrinkled, and she's wearing black basketball shorts. Pale blue toes curl against the floor, matching her crudely painted blue fingernails.

"Exactly my point." Leo doesn't know what he's doing now. He had only wanted to talk to Piper about the test in history. Not only did he want to know what Wikipedia page to look up, but he also needs her notes. "In all my years, I have never seen Drew Tanaka cry."

Drew sighs. "Do you particularly like annoying me?"

"Of course," Leo winks. "It's the full Valdez experience."

"I'm closing the door now." Drew glares.

"Wait," Leo sticks his foot in between the door and the frame. "When you see Piper, can you tell her I'm going to the library? To do that History stuff."

Drew stares at him and sniffs. "Fine, whatever. Now get the hell off my property."

* * *

It only kind of hits him when he's scanning through the _Fantasy_ section of the library. Piper totally lied to Drew about hanging out with him. Although, Drew didn't exactly say Piper claimed to be with _Leo_. Just some friends. As far as Leo knows, Piper has a lot of friends as everyone _loves_ her, but only has a small group of close friends. Of course, Leo is of the elite, so he _should_ be with Piper McLean right now.

It's so unbelievably frustrating, he kicks a cart of books that needed to be reshelved.

There's nothing new here anyway. A little kid, maybe Harley's age, runs past him to put some books back. As embarrassing as it is, Leo reads books meant for kids. He honest to God can't deal with the words used in books for his level. Children's books tend to be more entertaining anyway, and his brain is stupid when it comes to words.

Leo instead logs onto a computer. He's in the middle of a Super Smash Bros match with him vs Kirby when someone sits next to him.

"What are you doing?"

Leo only briefly turns his head before focusing back on the screen. His cheeks burn a little because it's Calypso- and _Christ_ she's as hot and alluring as ever. "Playing a game."

"Huh," Calypso's scrutinizing the way he clicks his keyboard. "What is it?"

"Smash Bros." Leo furrows his brows. "You've never played?"

"Don't own a computer," Calypso says. She smells like vanilla and cigarette smoke. "Never played a video game in my life."

" _WHAT?_ " The outburst causes his character to back off a cliff, and the librarian to eye them suspiciously. Honestly, the lady should be used to Leo's outbursts, considering he's not exactly the quietest person. "That's so not cool."

"Never had anyone to play with." Calypso sounds honest enough. "Well actually, the Robotics club goes to the arcade a lot, and always invites me."

Leo's seen the Robotics club at the arcade a few times. They're a small group who are obsessed with the pinball machine. Sometimes they play air hockey, but when they do, it's to the _death_. A very frightening bunch.

This actually makes Leo confused. " _You're_ in the Robotics club?"

Calypso frowns. "No. Gardening. They're both small clubs so we were stuck in one room. So is the art club, but they're hardly a club because there's only two people."

"That's messed up." Leo's not in any clubs except the club of abandoned best friends. He's still pissed off at Piper and doesn't know when he won't be.

"Yeah," Calypso leans back in her chair. "Band got lucky. They have too many people to be smushed down. They do it to all the art and STEM clubs. Sports and dances get priority over other extracurriculars. Did you go to homecoming? I heard it was great."

"Nah," Leo had spent the night watching movies with Jake. He had to cancel his normal plans with Jason and Piper. _Jeez_ , did they know about all this? Jason _has_ to know, he's practically played every sport offered in the last couple of years. And Piper has enough connections to know about the injustice. She's very into speeches and talking about rights and equality. "That completely and utterly blows."

"Yeah," Calypso glances at the clock and stands. Leo didn't notice it earlier, but she has a stack of books on the table. "You should join Robotics, they're always looking for more members."

"What makes you think I'm interested?" Leo's never been in a Robotics club. He hardly does anything worthy of joining a club. He left the extracurriculars up to his friends.

Calypso stares at him. "I heard you used to make these really extravagant LEGO sculptures when you were a kid. And don't you work at some kind of garage? A family business I think."

Calypso isn't wrong, Leo was a bit over the top as a kid. Not that he ever really stopped playing with the colorful blocks- in fact, there's a model of a rainbow Colosseum sitting on his desk in his room. "How'd you know that?"

This is where Calypso frowns. "Are you oblivious? People talk about you a lot. Not just you, but your friends? It's kind of gross hearing the rumors about other people. You should hear the art club gossip all afternoon."

This is new information. Very new information actually. He didn't think of himself as a hot topic, but the idea that people would talk about him? He guess it makes sense, since he _is_ best friends with Piper McLean and Jason Grace. They're pretty well-known throughout the school.

"Uh," Leo wiggles his eyebrows. "All good things I hope."

Calypso doesn't say anything and it makes Leo nervous. Oddly very nervous and embarrassed. It's the fact that he can acknowledge that everyone knows his business. His stomach lurches and there's a sinking sense of despair in his gut. Everyone is acutely aware of Leo Valdez and how absolutely freaking pitiful and hopeless he is.

"See you around," Calypso finally mumbles, looking disappointed. Like she was expecting something of Leo, something that Leo could never imagine to deliver. Or maybe she sees his discomfort.

"Yeah," Leo restarts his game. "See you."

* * *

 **ME [15:09]:** u wanna hang out l8r?

 **ME [15:09]:** i mean i get if ur busy

 **ME [15:09]:** but lik im free

 **ME [15:09]:** u wanna do smthing?

 **PIPES [15:20]:** Leo, I'm on a date!

 **PIPES [15:21]:** Jason and I are at the zoo

 **PIPES [15:23]:** He bought me this big teddy bear

 **ME [15:30]:** thats

 **ME [15:31]:** gr8.

 **ME [15:33]:** super duper

 **ME [15:34]:** cool.

 **PIPES [15:47]:** Jason's such a dork. He almost had his hand bitten off by a goat.

 **PIPES [15:48]:** He's okay though.

 **ME [15:50]:** very dorky

 **PIPES [15:53]:** Hey, talk to you later?

 **ME [15:59]:** yeah ok np

* * *

Leo sleeps in and it's the worst mistake he can ever make. He doesn't actually notice it because he's too goddamn tired to even process something more than his normal routine.

Wake up. Trip over mess. Swear to clean room.

Shower. Wash face. Brush teeth.

Take meds. Find clean clothes. Wear clean clothes.

Feed Festus. Regret brushing teeth to eat food.

When he's downstairs eating cereal, Jake stares at him when he wheels in. "Don't you have school?"

"Yeah," Leo bends to pat Festus. Jake stares at him some more.

"Aren't you late? The first bell rings in ten minutes."

Leo drops his spoon. "What? No way. No joke?"

He curses and runs out, grabbing his bag. Festus trouts loyally after him, because he forgot to lock the door. It's ridiculous because it had rained last night and she's splashing water everywhere. Leo has to rush her back inside, with Jake laughing to himself.

"Don't forget to pick up Harley tonight!" Jake yells in midst of chuckles.

Leo shoots him a middle finger, as he races down streets. He's not sure if he'll make it at this point, but he knows his last 'Mile time' from freshman year was 7 minutes, meaning he _should_ make it on time. But he's also been lazing around for three years so it's pretty much anyone's guess.

The school bells ring loudly. It's loud enough from a block away, and Leo has to formulate a new plan to slide in unnoticed. His first class is his Math one, luckily on the first floor where he sits by the window. With luck, Leo could try to slide his way through the window and pretend he's missed his name call during attendance.

When Leo streaks through the school's wet grass in the front lawn, he hears whistling and his last name being shouted. Shoot. He hopes it's not a teacher who'll complain about it. Although, Leo has a sinking suspicion about who it is, considering he's heard his name being yelled in that tone a lot more than he should've.

"Freaking Coach," Leo mumbles, darting around towards the side of the school. He's pleasantly surprised to find a bit of good luck where the window is open. Leo stumbles through the window to collapse in his seat.

"How nice of you to join us, Mr. Valdez." His teacher doesn't even turn around from the board. She's writing the equations down from last night's homework. "You have detention. Go down to the principal's office. And for the love of God, _please_ take the door!"

This causes a bit of bubbling giggles from various parts of the class to erupt, as Leo groans and trudges out of the class. He was _so_ close.

* * *

"Dude," Jason says when Leo enters the class with a pass and sits down. "What happened? I heard about jumping through a window, but what happened in the principal's office?"

Leo squints at the board and flips through his copy of the _Great Gatsby_ , which he absolutely does not care about. The class is on page 93, but Leo is 90 pages behind because he couldn't get past too much before giving up.

"Leo." Jason taps his pencil on the desk. "Did you really try to get in through the window?"

"Yes, Jason Grace." Leo glares at Jason, like the blond has interrupted his reading process. "I honest to God, tried to get in through the window. How do you even know that? It was literally last period."

"People are bored here, and love to talk." Jason snorts. "How'd you get caught?"

"Hedge," Leo flips through the book pages. His teacher's voice rings on as she goes on and on about the protagonist and the relationship shared with the narrator (which Leo finds weird because isn't the protagonist and the narrator supposed to be the same thing?). "He said I was interrupting his gym class by running through the field. Y'know- the gym class that was jogging on the track on the other side of the school?"

"Sucks." Jason scribbles something down in his notebook. "What happened?"

"It's not the first time I've been late." Leo balances his chin in his hand. "If I was late one more time, they would've called home and suggested a meeting with my guardians. But then I told them _Jake_ was home instead of Nyssa, and they left my punishment up to Coach."

Jason raises an eyebrow amusingly. "And what's wrong with Jake?"

"He will literally talk in circles just for the fun of it," Leo says bluntly. "' _Sir, we've come to tell you, Leo Valdez has been late more than enough times to warrant a meeting?'_ and Jake would be like, _'Who is Leo Valdez? Never heard of him in my entire life._ '"

"It's like you guys are related." Jason teases. "You would do the same thing with your kid."

"Kid? I'm too cool for a kid," Leo leans back in his chair. "I've got Festus and that's all I need."

"You're not going to get married?"

"Who said I was? Who said I wasn't?"

Jason's eyes flicker towards the teacher then towards Leo. "Wouldn't you like to settle down with some girl at your side? Someone who could support you and love you and all that?"

They were rapidly getting into uncharted territory. Leo did not want to be the sailor drowning in the tsunami of Jason Grace's questions. At this very moment, Leo doesn't _want_ some girl he has yet to find. It's a bit scary when he can imagine himself living in an apartment with a guy (not necessarily Jason, but not necessarily _not_ Jason) a lot more than he can imagine himself living with a girl. He would think he would like to fall in love with someone first, before marrying them, and right now he's very much in love with-

"Jason, when you find someone who is willing to marry me, be my guest," Leo says crossly, sitting up straight. "Let me finish my story though. Hedge totally tried to recruit me."

Jason accepts the answer with contempt, but his eyes light up with the last sentence. "Recruit for what?"

"Track? Cross- country? Wasn't really listening, and I can't remember the difference."

"All because you were late and jumped through a window?"

" _No_. I mean, essentially, _yeah_. But it was like, more than that. Like, he saw how fast I was running or something. Anyway, it's either that or I clean the gum from under the tables in the cafeteria."

Jason furrows his brow. "You've _had_ to done worse than be late to get cafeteria gum duty."

Leo's a bit embarrassed. "I may have screwed with the chairs a bit when Hedge was outside the room. Technically my offense was _harassing a faculty member_ , but he was so excited about my Roadrunner skills that he wasn't too mad. Yelled at me a bunch, though."

"All he does is yell."

"He yelled at me _some more_."

Jason leans forward now. "So what'd you say?"

At this point, Leo's already abandoned the pretense of reading along with the class. "Say about what?"

" _Sports_ , Leo."

Leo rolls his eyes. "Of course I said I'll try out next season. It's not like I really have a choice. I _know_ how much gum is under the tables, considering I'm the one who _put_ most of it there. Have you seen under our table? It's a rainbow of pale minty fresh and bubblegum."

Jason grins at Leo. "That's great. Not the gum part- that's a bit gross- but you're trying out? I guess we'll see each other more after school. I never see you anymore."

Leo tears at the corner of his notebook page. "So not true. You're seeing me now, right?"

"You're exhausting sometimes, you know that right?" Jason flips a page in his book.

"Yeah, well you're-"

"Mr. Valdez and Mr. Grace, do you have something to share with the class?" Their teacher cuts into their conversation with a verbal knife. Her glaring is harsh, as everyone in the class turns to look at them. Leo's classmates thrive in drama.

"No M'am," Jason says politely. Leo shrugs.

She gives them a final look before addressing the class. "Now, everyone I want an analysis…"

Leo drifts off, staring at the window. Jason doesn't talk to him for the rest of class.

He mentally debates the perks of skipping the rest of the day, but ultimately decides Nyssa's wrath is terrifying and he should avoid it at all times. Maybe he should skip his last class?

But he can't, Leo reasons. He has after-school detention. And skipping that would invoke more rage than anything.

Leo falls asleep to the sounds of pages flipping, and thoughts of Nyssa's hand slapping the back of his head.


	9. p

**p**

It's the beginning of December when snow first begins to fall, and coat the town. Leo's relatively happy as he fumbles with his camera.

"It's all white and clean," Nico says.

Leo doesn't look up from his camera. He thinks he has enough pictures to work on the project. He figures he's lucky enough to have someone like Nico to help him.

When Leo first worked with Nico, the kid didn't talk. Leo really _really_ didn't like him all too much. But over time, he's not too bad. Leo supposes he could be good friends with the freshman.

"Do you have a cord?" Leo mumbles. "Really need to upload these."

Nico's oddly talkative today, with the delight of a child. For the past few days, Leo's been at home chilling with Harley, and he could honestly compare the two. Nico hands over the cord and folds his legs up in his chair.

"Do you want to come over?" Nico says slowly. His face burns a faint pink when Leo looks at him. "Uh, the Stolls, and Rachel are going to be there. We're going to watch some movies, and maybe go out to eat."

Leo's not sure why he's being invited to this. He's hardly been friends with these people long enough to warrant any type of invitation to _anything_. Yet, he gets a simple olive branch of friendship extended by an emo kid with eyes as sunken as a raccoon. Not that Leo could really judge.

"Not like I got something good to do anyway." Leo breathes and sits back in his chair.

Nico nods, before going back to his computer screen. They fall into a silence, but it's a _good_ silence. It leaves Leo to think, as he clicks endlessly on his pictures.

He doesn't really have anything else to do today. Jason has been avoiding him and ignored all of Leo's (4) incessant texts. Which is absolutely super duper okay with Leo, because who needs Jason anyway? Leo doesn't care, even if it makes his stomach roll, tumble, and bubble with acid, and it makes his mouth feels dry like he's trying to swallow a pill of desolation.

Piper's in utter delight with the fact that she's already sent in every single one of her college applications, and she's already received word from New Rome. Her SAT scores weren't the perfect 1600 (a smooth 1390), but they were definitely worth the hours of drilling and studying with Jason and Leo. Leo had spent many nights waking up to drool over practice books and Piper's pencil stabbing his cheek. Talking to her would strike up college conversations that Leo does not want to have because he does _not_ like talking about his future.

Of the SAT's, Leo scored the highest (a whopping 790 Math and a 710 English adding to 1500) which he thinks is _hilarious_ because the night before was poorly spent eating pizza and completely _destroying_ AI's in racing games. He had stayed up until 9 AM when Nyssa slammed open the door to wake him up. She had sighed very loudly and walked off mumbling about _Idiots who make bad decisions that affect their lives_. He clearly remembers the way she laughed when he said his scores and asked if he was joking because there was unquestionably no way someone who can survive on Mountain Dew and Doritos could get off their lazy ass to study.

Jason followed (1460), but had been more excited by the fact that he had survived under piles of workbooks and papers. Leo's pretty sure his friend had been stressed since _middle school_ , with his father signing him up for everything known to man to help prepare him. (Although it was decided between Jason and Leo, privately and through tears, that Jason's dad had probably only signed Jason up for everything to keep him so occupied that Jason wouldn't notice his father's absence. The plan had failed pathetically.)

After considering himself the hidden genius of the group, to which Piper had complained about _essays_ and _equations_ , Leo had found himself in a loop of _Now what the fuck next?_ He's graduating in early June and had only applied to a handful of schools (New Rome included) to broaden his horizons. He was going to apply to Harvard or Oxford as a joke but decided in the off chance that he _makes it in_ , the joke would've had already expired, forcing him into the cold reality of university life. The most extravagant school he reached is the lovely MIT, only through the persistent pushing of Jake and his rare father, who both wanted someone in their family to end up somewhere bigger than this small town. Only the three of them know about it.

"- You're doing it wrong," Nico comments and leans over to mess with the keyboard. "Are you even paying attention?"

"You have all of my attention," Leo says dryly, pushing his chair back.

If he could, he would have someone else run the rest of his life.

* * *

Even though Nico doesn't dress like he's rich (although Leo assumes band t-shirts might be expensive), he totally _is_.

The address Leo is texted leads him to a gigantic home filled with huge windows and dark roofing. The home itself is nearly all black and white but has a huge yard filled with colorful flowering plants covered lightly with a dust of snow. Surrounding the entire premise is a tall gate that stays shut when Leo's bike approaches.

Leo's filled with uncertainty when the intercom crackles at him. "Who is it, and what is your business?"

"Uh, Leo? Leo Valdez. Nico told me I could come over."

A pause. Then- "No Nico lives here. This is the home of the one Bruce Wayne."

There's a bit of shuffling and muffled laughter.

"Move," Leo hasn't really heard Rachel's voice too much, but he could recognize it. "Sorry, the Stolls are unbearable. The doors should be opening."

As her sentence ends, the gates creak open, allowing Leo to ride through. He cautiously passes by the long driveway filled with a motorcycle and two cars: a sleek Hearse and a funky looking pastel green Prius with flower decals.

The grand front doors open to Nico Di Angelo wearing sweatpants and a Lana Del Rey shirt. Huh.

"You can leave your bike on the steps, one of the maids will get it." Nico turns around and stomps back into the house. The kid has maids. _Maids_. Leo's not sure if the new revelation of knowing a rich kid is good or bad (though Leo does know about Jason's money, but he's been around him so much that Leo nearly forgets Jason's rich).

Inside is furnished modernly, if not grimly. Everything is black, white or silver. The only pieces of color are the various plants popping around. The paintings hanging around are really depressing, but the photographs are of Nico when he was little. Nico looked like a happy child, maybe even _Leo_ happy.

"Nice place," Leo comments.

"Yeah. Satan likes being classy." Nico says this so bluntly that Leo honestly can't tell if it's a joke. He laughs though, and Nico gives a small smile.

* * *

The two go down a long hallway, passing by way too many rooms to count. One of the rooms, in particular, sounds like a concert was on the other side of the door. Heavy rock with crashing drums and rocking guitars.

"Older sibling?" Leo smirks, because _yeah_ , this might be the one part of Nico's life that he can relate to.

Nico scowls. "No. I'm an only child."

While Leo is in no position to question Nico, Leo _knows_ the other is lying. From what he's gathered in the photographs posted around the house, there are at least four children living here.

There's the pictures of Nico, some alone but others with an older girl. Long black hair, and the same Italian features. They look happy together (the same goofy silliness but admiration Leo has for Jake), but the pictures of the girl all end at around the same age. It's like she reached her teens and then never aged again. By his calculations, Leo would assume she'd be a young adult by now.

There is another girl, one whose face is familiar enough to tug at the back of Leo's mind. Light-colored curls and darker brown skin. Her pictures range from a toddler to around Nico's age, some of them with Nico but rarely so. She doesn't look like Nico, except the similar type of soft facial structure.

Besides the girls, there's a boy. There are a few pictures of his graduation (Leo recognizes the CHB colors), so Leo can only assume this might be Nico's older brother. The guy is white, the straight up from Germany or Ireland or somewhere else type of white, as different to Nico's olive Italian, and black sister (if she is indeed his sister).

Leo doesn't think he can really judge because even though Nyssa and he are pretty much full-on Hispanic, Jake is technically half (even though he looks fairly white), and Harley is a bit of a questionable mix because his mother has never known her parents.

Nico opens the door to what Leo can only assume is his room. Like the rest of the house, it's huge, and maybe two or three times bigger than Leo's own. Unlike the rest of the house, it has a more comfortable feeling, like a teenager might _actually_ live here. The room is only decently clean, with stocked bookshelves and an entire rack of CDs. Posters of bands like ACDC, Black Veil Brides, and Good Charlotte litter the walls, but are also mixed with several Beatles, Rolling Stones, and a very suspicious Beyonce. There's a small flat screen shoved in the corner playing _Spongebob Squarepants_.

Travis is laying upside down on the edge of the giant bed playing on a 3DS, and mumbling about a monster he can't defeat because he ran out of healing potions. Connor and Rachel are watching the children's show playing, with Rachel's nose scrunched up as she paints her nails and Connor splayed out on the floor.

"You missed it," Connor says, not looking up from the screen. "Red totally gave the biggest burp. It was like listening to a lion roar."

"It wasn't that loud." Rachel aggressively slathers a coat of green on her big toe. "It was like, a 7."

"700." Travis corrects. He glances from his game, blinks at Leo, and frantically tries to right himself. He slides off the bed and lands with a painful thud. Travis grins up at Leo and Nico. "Hey. Didn't know you were coming."

Leo shrugs.

"That's cool," Travis fixes his hair. "Welcome to the crew then."

* * *

For some reason, Leo finds himself with absolutely nothing to do on Friday.

He should be with Jason and Piper, watching movies or something. But Jason's confusingly angry at him, and Piper's taking Jason's side. Or maybe it's Piper who's angry at Leo, and Jason's taking her side. Whatever it is, Leo doesn't like it because it _hurts_.

Not once did either make an effort to talk to Leo. No phone calls or texts either, which is ridiculous because phones are _perfect_ for holding conversations when you're too mad to look at someone in the face. Leo tries to brush it off, and act like he's unaffected. If they can, then so can he.

He thinks about Calypso and the last time he saw her. They had been talking about after-school clubs. Art Club, Gardening and Robotics mashed into one. He can do that.

Which is what leads to Leo sitting in a room of maybe 15 people, slumped in a chair. He actually knows a good chunk of the people and is pleasantly surprised to see Drew among the artists. She doesn't say anything to him.

There's no line between the three clubs. Due to being such a small group, they just clumped together working on different projects. He can point out some people: Rachel (no surprise), Calypso, Annabeth and Clovis, a kid who sleeps through his History class. Leo doesn't really know him that well, but he's not sure _anyone_ does. Clovis would be sleeping by the time you would try to approach him. He offers tired suggestions to any student who walks by.

Rachel's heavily invested in an acrylic portrait of a girl while sitting clumped together with Drew. Drew's making small comments, not loud enough for Leo to hear, as she drags charcoal against a sketchpad. This might be the sinful and delicious gossip Calypso was talking about earlier- which makes sense because Drew is _the_ Rumor Queen.

From what Leo can see, Annabeth is huddling with a group of guys arguing over the scaling and dimensions of a drone. She looks frustrated, with frizzy hair everywhere, but definitely in her element of geniuses.

Calypso sits next to Leo, doodling on her arms. She doesn't seem to have the same fear of ink poisoning as a green haired girl who shoots her suspicious looks. "It's cool you came. I thought you wouldn't."

"Why wouldn't I? You people seem-" Leo watches as a notebook flies across the room with designs of drones scattering everywhere. An angry blond yells something about _Lord of the Flies_. "-Invested."

"Yeah," Calypso looks up. She's looking over the classroom, perhaps trying to see what Leo sees. Leo doesn't really know. "We're all good family though. Everyone kind of is."

"Huh," Leo notes. "So what's going on?"

Calypso sighs. "Everyone's stressed because there's the Robotics contest coming up, and the documents and plannings are due at the end of the month. Then there's also the whole gardening argument of what we should plant to harvest in the summer. Finally, Rachel and Drew are gossiping about _who knows_ , as they try to enter pieces in for the Winter Art Show in two weeks."

"There's an Art Show?" Leo's actually surprised.

Calypso's lips curls with disgust, making Leo feel dumb and like he shouldn't have said that. "Hardly. The arts programs don't get enough funding for anything great, so it's more of the school hanging them on poster boards in hallways. Haven't you been here all four years?"

"I mean, yeah." Leo never really cared much for art, so he wouldn't remember any such event in particular. He has faint memories of Drew getting stressed for several art shows, but he didn't think it had anything to do with CHB.

Calypso frowns. She soon leaves after that to tend to the girl with green hair, who was talking about changing the fertilizer type. Leo watches the way she moves, from the agitated and forceful hand gestures to the threatened stance she took.

"Leo," Leo hears his voice from across the room. He locks eyes with Annabeth Chase. "Do you think you can help?"

"Yeah, sure." Leo heaves himself to cross the classroom and look at what Annabeth is pointing towards. "What is it?"

Annabeth eyes a boy who looks like he could be her cousin. "Malcolm thinks our best bet for the Contest is to build a quadcopter."

"Uh huh."

Malcolm rolls his eyes. " _Annabeth_ thinks we should just work on that dumb robot project _everyone's_ doing."

"It's practical!" Annabeth argues. "Christopher just wants to make a water drone. Again."

"Lame." Malcolm agrees, narrowing his eyes at who Leo can assume is Christopher. "No one wants to do that, man. Stop trying to make it happen, it's never going to happen."

"We tried last year, but no one wanted to do it," Annabeth presses her hands on the table. She flattens piles of papers filled with designs and plans. "I am _not_ graduating without this win under my belt. No water drones."

"No water drones," Malcolm echoes, scowling. " _Christopher_."

Christopher averts his eyes.

Leo flips through the piles. "These are really advanced. Like, so not high school level. How're you going to do them?"

"Well, duh." The brunette next to Christopher raises an eyebrow and ignores his question. "Name's Shane. But we need to do the best to _be_ the best."

Leo is so out of his league he doesn't know what to do. These people are the very overachievers he tries to avoid. Dealing with Jason's need for success is one thing, dealing with Annabeth Chase and Co., is another.

He flips a page open. It's filled with scribbles but the idea is still obvious. "This is cool. Full-size robot to help disabled students. You might have to downgrade it to a smaller size."

"How?" Malcolm leans over the table to ogle at the sheet. "It's person sized, and the designs aren't even all that good. Not even _Beckendorf_ used it."

Beckendorf sounds very familiar to Leo. His mind takes him to Piper and her family, but Leo ignores the train of thought.

"Dude," Christopher punches his arm. "Don't bring him up."

"Sorry." Malcolm still looks at the paper with a hint of apprehension. "It's still a dumb idea."

Annabeth studies Leo's face. "You really think this is good enough?"

"Yeah, just a few modifications." Leo flips the page over to reveal a few small and hastily scribbled notes. "Whoever came up with the idea seemed to really like it at some point. It shouldn't be hard to remodel it."

"You'll have your hands full." Shane snorts. "It's not even a good idea-"

"No," Annabeth interrupts. She's never really talked to Leo much, but she seems sure of Leo's ability. "My boyfriend's little brother is disabled. Let Leo try if he wants. If he can't fix it up, we'll just look through the files for a better project."

"What." Leo suddenly finds himself sitting at a desk by himself with paper and colored pencils. A calculator sits on the desk, next to rulers and compasses. "How the hell did I get an entire club's work on my hands?"

Much to his annoyance, the idea of trying to figure this out is way too appealing. He actually likes puzzles and math, but rarely finds anything too interesting. This is a bit of a challenge, because Leo has to take into account all the materials, all the time needed, and all the actual modifications to the actual plan.

According to the blueprints, it's a simple aid to help disabled students with developmental issues. Gives them a friend, and a reminder to take meds, yadda yadda. Leo only briefly looked at the list, only to get to the cool part.

He dives into work quickly. Leo only realizes that he doesn't actually have a solid model until Clovis looks over his shoulder. Leo had forgotten about the previously sleeping kid. "What is that? It looks like a troll. Just a tiny version of a human."

Leo leans back, to find that it actually sort of _does_ look like a troll. "Fuck."

"It's for kids, right?" Clovis traces Leo's notes with his finger. "That is a tiny person. Tiny people are for nightmares."

Clovis doesn't say anything after that but settles two chairs away from Leo. He folds his arms and rests his head on them.

Leo scans over his design. Kid friendly? What does Harley like? Singing and running. Bad cartoons. Superheroes. Leo figures a superhero might make it be cooler, but he's worried about potential copyright issues. Making up his own superhero would be lame.

Sometime at around 4:30 someone announces a snack run to the vending machines in the cafeteria. Calypso's one of the few people to stay back. During this time, Leo walks with Rachel and Drew staying at the back of the group. He hadn't known they were friends, but they seemed fairly friendly with each other.

"Has your dad lifted the boyfriend ban?" Drew rubs at a charcoal smudge on her arm. "He's so not serious about the whole not going to prom thing either, right?"

Leo had assumed Rachel was a sophomore. Only juniors and seniors can go to prom. Anyone else has to be invited by an upperclassman.

"I think he wants me to become a nun or something. Take a vow of celibacy." Rachel counts the money from her wallet. "If chastity belts still exist, I would've had one from the day I was born."

"Totally sucks," Drew snaps her gum. "When are you going to let me cut your hair? My mother's a stylist, I have her skills." Her hand combs through Rachel's frizz.

"When I die."

Leo's box of chocolate covered raisins get stuck, and it takes 3 beef jerky's to get them down. Annabeth walks with him as the group walks back towards the classroom.

"You could've just shook it," Annabeth comments watching Leo hold a small load. She holds a chocolate bar and orange juice. "If you push the machine, everything normally falls out."

"But now I'm satisfied for the rest of the day." Leo peels open beef jerky. "Hey, is your boyfriend some kid who goes to SPQR? I think I still have his sweater."

Annabeth raises an eyebrow. "Percy told me about meeting a Leo. I figured it was you from his description but I wasn't too sure."

"Yeah, Percy was pretty cool. Can you deliver his sweater back to him? I feel kind of bad."

"Of course." Annabeth breaks a piece of chocolate off and offers it to Leo, who says a polite _No, thank you_. She gives a reassuring smile. "How's it going with your plan? So far everyone's still arguing about the idea of having an android that cleans up your room or a plugin to spray releases smells automatically at certain times. Obviously, we're getting nowhere."

"That sounds…. Interesting," Leo thinks over his own plans. "I'm still looking for a kid-friendly user face. Even though I have a kid brother, I can't really think of anything he likes that will fit."

"Hmm." Annabeth taps her chin. "Maybe an animal? My stepbrothers love the zoo."

Leo thinks about Festus. While it's clear that Leo loves her the most, he does know that Harley likes playing with her a lot. "Yeah, that could work. You like dogs?"

Annabeth makes a face. "More of a cat person, myself."

"Yikes," Leo mumbles. "Would prefer something every kid would like."

"Festus is cool." Drew looks behind her shoulder at Annabeth and Leo. "Don't look at me like that, I don't hate animals."

"Sorry, Satan." Leo points half bitten jerky at her back. "Festus ain't one of your hellhounds. Talk to me when you seize control of Cerebus."

"Haha, you're so funny." Drew rolls her eyes. She pulls her ponytail up into a bun. "You're a real comic, Valdez."

Rachel turns to face Leo too. "Something like a frog might be cute. A tiny green frog that'll hop around ribbiting to a little boy. I can draw it for you."

"A frog is cute and all, but we need something cool." As they continue down the halls, Leo eyes a poster supporting the CHB Centaurs.

Annabeth follows his eye uncertainly. "A Centaur?"

"Too elaborate. While a challenge, working with all those gears might be hard." Leo snorts when he pictures Harley running after Festus with a tiny horseman galloping after them. The glint of Festus' golden fur attracted Leo. Hmm- "How about a dragon?"

"A dragon?" Drew's nose crinkles. "Hey, loser, are you six?"

"Exactly. It's great for younger kids." Leo gets excited by his own idea. His hands fly as he tries to express a dragon and why it's an amazing choice. "Everyone loves dragons. I would expect you to like it since you _are_ as vicious as one."

"No it's a good idea," Annabeth says, nodding along with Leo's hand motions. It feels like she's picturing it with Leo. "A dragon for a disabled kid might make them feel cooler. More powerful."

"Color theme? Palette? I can make a swatch for you." Rachel shoots off, brimming with excitement.

"I like gold," Leo hums, images of Festus flying through his head. "Gold seems perfect for a little dragon."

Leo's going to make a dragon. He's going to make a _motherfucking dragon._ Holy shit. _Holy shit!_

"It sounds good," Annabeth pats Leo on the back. "Once you figure out all the dimensions, I'll look it over to see what we can do."

"That'll be great, actually." Leo beams at her. He feels happy with what he's got.

He feels happy here.

* * *

"Piper and Jason came by," Jake casually mentions, when Leo walks into the living room.

"Did they?" Leo searches through the couch cushions to find his phone. He couldn't exactly call it because it died earlier, but he needed it. Not for any particular reason as no one ever really calls him, but simply just to have it on his person.

"Yep," Jake's watching a cop show. The dead body on the screen had been stabbed, and the detectives were so good they could instantly tell what the weapon was (a letter opener) and what shoes were worn by the killer (flip flops, most likely women's by the smaller size).

"Okay."

Jake shrugs. "I just thought you should know that. Of course, they were looking for you, but they didn't say why. They assumed you would be home, but you weren't."

Leo's phone isn't in sight. He straightens and stretches. "I was at school. Club."

"Club," Jake says like the word tasted weird in his mouth. "Does it have to do with the school calling?"

"The school called?" Leo scowls. He's dead. He's dead. He's dead. If Nyssa knew, he's going to definitely get his ear pulled and maybe a shoe was thrown at him. Oh god no.

Jake's mouth twitches. "There's indoor track tryouts next Tuesday and Wednesday. Cuts posted on Friday outside of the office."

Oh. Yikes.

Leo gives out a sigh and salutes. "Roger that."

Jake smiles at him. "Nice to see you're doing something now. It's a bit sad seeing you moping all the time."

"I do not mope!" Leo gives him a dirty look. "Moping is for girls who cry over their boyfriends when they forget to get her a gift."

Jake raises an eyebrow at him and clicks the volume up.

Leo frowns, heading back to his room. He's not moping. He's perfectly fine. A- OK.

Jeez. Fucking Jake.


	10. l (2)

**l**

Well.

Leo frowns, chewing decidedly, at the empty lunch table. The table that he normally ate with Jason and Piper is completely empty. No Jason shuffling through papers and reciting notes. No Piper playing air guitar and laughing at jokes.

Leo feels a little suffocated standing in the crowded room and finds his way outside. It's unreasonably cold, so Leo has to put on his ugly looking chullo hat and zip up his too big coat. He throws out his lunch except for his apple, not very in the mood for eating anymore. Outside, amongst the scattered yard of his school, sat and talked pocketfuls of the student population.

Through his years of high school and years of pranks, Leo knew the back of the school was more deserted, except for the few slackers and smokers.

To his surprise, he finds Calypso smoking in a white ski jacket. Really, he shouldn't have been surprised, as the back of the school lacked any type of teachers milling around. There's only a small camera near one of the doors watching and memorizing carefully.

"Sup?" Leo bites into his apple. Calypso looks up from her phone and lets out an air of smoke.

"Leo." Calypso mumbles, fidgeting. Her finger glides over her phone quickly. "What're you doing here? You should go to your friends."

"You're my friend, lady," Leo says.

"God," Calypso coughs.

When she doesn't say anything, Leo continues eating. Calypso doesn't seem to mind his intruding but doesn't make any conscious effort to start the conversation again.

Leo's down to the apple core when he says it.

"Can I try?"

Calypso snaps her wristband.

"Y'know," Leo waves his hands around to clarify, "The _fagging_ thing."

Calypso coughs hard enough that she stumbles. Leo makes a move to help her, but she holds to a hand for him to pause. When she looks up, her eyes are brimming with tears. " _What_?"

"Isn't that what you call it?" Leo flicks an apple seed at her. "Smoking."

"Holy shit," Calypso scans Leo's face. She gives out a pleasant chortle. It sends a warm feeling into Leo's stomach even if he can tell she's poking fun at him. "That is the dumbest thing I have ever heard. Where do you even think I'm from?"

"Europe." Leo shrugs. "Your accent is weird."

"I'm mid accent change and I like messing with people," Calypso snorts. She crushes her cigarette under her foot. "Jesus, Leo."

Leo stomps on the crushed nicotine for good measure. "Where _are_ you from? Definitely not here, I would've seen you before." Leo would've seen Calypso because she's hot and mature. Leo notices hot people, and _holy shit_ he would notice Calypso.

"Greece. Born and raised in one of the more popular cities, before moving to one of the islands nearby." Calypso sobers up. "Not that it matters- my dad travels a lot, taking me with him."

"What's he do?" Leo itches to feel the burn that is sure to follow any smoking he's to do. He makes a grab for it, and Calypso raises the box over her head effortlessly. "To travel so much."

"Photographer. For Atlas magazine. _Capturing every part of the world one click at a time_ ," Calypso rehearses the magazine's motto in a robotic tone. "My mom took off when I was little, and he wanted to get over that. Some crap about wanting to believe that the world can be beautiful even with all its ugly people."

Leo nods. "I take Photo. As a class- not a hobby or job or anything."

Calypso gives him a suspicious look and Leo raises his hands in surrender. "I'm not that good at it anyway. Right now, all I have is Nico to depend on."

"Hmm," Contrary to her earlier movements, Calypso does hold up a single cigarette to Leo. "Nico Di Angelo?"

Leo greedily snatches it, beaming at her. He fingers the stick carefully. "Yeah. Kinda short, kinda depressing. I think he's a freshman or something. Speaking of-"

"I'm a Junior." Calypso's phone gets pushed into her back jeans pocket. "Not that it matters. I'm supposed to have graduated by now, but moving too much can mess up your education."

"That's cool," Leo says nonchalantly as if that's not one of the coolest things he's heard. He knows an older girl, one who seems to have a slight bit of _interest_ in him. And she's really hot. If that's not an anomaly, Leo's not sure what is.

"Don't waste that, cigarettes are expensive," Calypso warns, her fingers trembling as she lights the cigarette held between her lips. She lights up Leo's, leaving it glowing and burning hot. "Anyway. Nico Di Angelo likes you?"

Leo coughs after sucking in. Every cough racks through his body as smoke forces its way out. Calypso waits amusedly for his answer. "I-I'm not sure. His friends are cool. He's a cool guy I guess."

The bell rings to signal the switch from lunch to the next class period. Leo doesn't have to worry about it (free period) but he's not too sure if Calypso has to get to class now.

Calypso makes no effort to move. "I'm surprised you're not going to your friends. Your best friends, I mean."

He doesn't know why, but it pisses him off to hear that. "I'm surprised you're not going to class."

"Fair enough," Calypso shrugged. "But I don't particularly like Astronomy. But you like your friends, don't you?"

"Shut up." Leo spits out the cigarette. He's gotten tired and grossed out at the taste by this time. It burns on the ground until he grinds it with his sneaker.

"Sorry," Calypso apologizes. She pulls out her phone and glances briefly to check the time. "Do you want to get out of here?" Her thumb is bent behind her to the back of the school.

"Yeah," Leo adjusts his hat. Hell _yes_ , does he want to leave. "Got anywhere in mind?"

"Not really," Calypso admits. "You?"

"Nope," Leo grins. "Perfect."

* * *

He skips the rest of the day.

Leo comes home at 4, subjecting himself to the whining of Harley as the kid complains about Leo not being home in time. In return, Leo promises to play video games with him over the weekend.

Harley's the only one home, making him the only human contact for Leo.

"Leo," Harley knocks on the bathroom door. Leo curses the fact that the two of them share a bathroom. "I'm coming in. I really got to go."

"No. I'm showering. Go use the bathroom downstairs."

"Okay, I won't look." Harley completely ignores Leo and pushes into the bathroom. He also dismisses any of Leo's protests. "You steamed up the mirror."

Leo glares through shower curtains, as he washes his arms. After a few seconds, and not hearing anything, Leo's concerned. "You okay there, buddy?"

"I'm pooping," Harley says happily. The sounds of a video game starts up. Leo groans, and hits his head on the wall.

His life has been reduced to nothing but showering while his brother poops next to him. Celine Dion still plays from Leo's iPod sitting at the sink. _My Heart Will Go On_ is so frustratingly amazing that Leo can only sigh when he thinks about what's on the other side of the shower curtains.

He scrubs his hair furiously. "Are you done yet?"

"No!"

Leo closes his eyes and lets the water cascade over his body. He should do his homework after this. Maybe text one of the Stolls or something. Then he'll go to sleep and do the whole day over again. And again. And again.

Leo hears a small but distinct _plop!_ and hits his head against the wall again.

If anything, Leo could run out. Go to 7-Eleven and buy a hot dog. Or maybe escape to the arcade and apply for a job to do something.

He's such a loser. He's a senior, but he doesn't do anything with his life. Leo's friend group is so tiny. Leo used to have so much fun before, so what happened?

Maybe he should do drugs. Leo's 100% sure that someone in the friendly walls of CHB sells drugs. God, maybe Piper does drugs. No, she's too clean for that. Maybe Drew does drugs.

Yeah. Leo can imagine that. Drew making clean cut lines on her compact mirror with a gift card to Forever 21 or some other store Leo can't possibly bring himself to care about. She leans in and snorts through a straw. Probably a black straw. Her pearl necklace hits the edge of the mirror.

"Christ, Harley." Leo jumps back as the water turns cold. Harley had just flushed the toilet, and Leo is ultimately the one affected. "Give a warning."

"I did but you weren't listening to me." Harley's humming as he washes his hands. "I'm all done, Leo!"

"Yeah, yeah." Leo flicks water over the curtain at Harley. "Hurry up and get out now."

The door shutting is the sound for Leo to get out. The water seems to refuse to turn back to its previously hot state, so Leo is left with no choice but to leave his once relaxing haven. He keeps the thoughts about Drew doing drugs though. That's… one of his more better and amazing daydreams.

"Ha," Leo walks into his room with only a towel on. He cha-cha and salsas his way inside, as his iPod plays _La_ _Bamba_. "Druggin' Drew. Drew Drugs an' Druggin'."

He's going delirious like _he's_ the one doing drugs. "Drew does drugs chugging cocaine down her nose canals." Leo laughs hysterically. "Drew does drugs in the driveway, doing dunks in the highway, doing drinks sideways-"

"Oh my God, Leo."

Leo shrieks and throws his iPod at the voice. Leo has never been good at throwing with force (although his accuracy is pretty good), so Jason Grace catches it before it bounces off his forehead.

"What are you doing here!?"

"What are _you_ doing here?"

"I _live_ here."

"I sent you a text."

"You _what?"_ Leo shuffles around his room to find his phone. He finds it in his school bag, only half charged, and without any messages.

Right-o. He had blocked Jason's number in a fit of anger, which seems like a bad idea now that he looks back on it. Best friends don't ignore best friends. But Jason does, and Leo is tired of that. Fighting fire with fire.

"Why are you in my house? _How_ are you in my house?" As far as Leo knows, the front door is locked, and Harley has been taught to never open the door _ever_. Although, perhaps Harley thinks that it's okay for Jason to come in because he's here so often.

Jason seems to take interest in Leo's messy desk like he's never seen it before. "Piper and I were supposed to go bowling. Piper's getting dressed, so I looked across through the window and saw yours open."

"Dude," Leo throws a sock at Jason. "Have you ever heard of _trespassing_?"

Jason sits on Leo's bed and pats the spot next to him. "Sit with me, man."

"Don't _man_ me," Leo pulls boxer briefs on under his towel and sits down a little away from Jason.

"Leo, come on. We need to talk."

Leo rolls his eyes. "And we _are_. Why are you acting so weird and creepy? You're the one angry at me for something I didn't do."

Jason's eyebrows furrow. "Where were you?"

Leo stares at him bemusedly. "What?"

"You. Thanksgiving? We were supposed to eat at my house. Take-out was great with Piper but would've been better with all three of us. With _you_. Remember, we talked about this?"

"Why would Piper even celebrate Thanksgiving? Like five days later the same pilgrims killed the Native Americans that helped them. It's messed up." Leo has no recollection of any conversation about eating take-out at Jason's house.

He had spent the day in pajamas watching Jake and Nyssa argue over macaroni and cheese versus rice. In the end, they had both, at least until Harley stole the macaroni and ran to his room. Festus had vomited in the toilet and laid on Leo's bed all day. Festus has been mopey till this day actually.

Jason's shifts closer. "It doesn't even matter what the day is for! You're supposed to be there! You've been so distant. What's up with you?"

Leo feels cold. He stands up to pull on one of the discarded t-shirts along the floor, hoping it's not too awfully dirty and stained.

"Dude. Chill out. It's hard talking to you when you're all angry." Leo opens the door and steps out. He's welcomed into the cool air of the rest of the house. Leo floats down the stairs and to the fridge in the kitchen, knowing well about his second shadow waiting for an answer.

"Are you going to say something? You've been so weird lately." Jason folds his arms, as he leans against a counter.

Leo sighs. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Listen, maybe you talked about it with Piper, but you sure as hell didn't talk about it with me."

"It was at lunch the week before." Jason clenches his jaw. "Y'know? You know what- just nevermind."

Leo's stomach has finished tying itself into a giant knot of trepidation and agony. "Look, Jason-"

"Leo," Jason takes a deep breath. "I seriously get that you're mad at me for something. I don't know _what_ , but I thought you could get over it. I thought _we_ could get over it."

Where is all this coming from? Leo's hand clenches a bottle of juice. "What-"

"Listen, I just came in to talk with my best friend, not to argue with him." Jason closes his eyes. "If you're still mad at me for whatever the hell I _did_ , then go ahead. I just thought-"

"Grace," Leo steps past Jason. "Shut the fuck up."

Even with Leo feeling like he wants to curl up and cry (which he _really really really_ does want to do), he speaks clearly. "I'm not mad at you, so get over yourself. I honestly do not care about this."

Jason opens his eyes. "You're not mad?"

"No?" Leo gaze settles just short of Jason's eyes. They focus in on donuts. "I'm not sure why you even _thought_ I was."

"You've been avoiding me. Me and Piper."

"No, I haven't. Didn't we have this conversation before? I talk to you guys all the time."

Jason shifts, his eyes narrowing at something behind Leo. "As much as you say you aren't, you _are_. It freaking sucks-"

"Jason?" The sound of plastic bags hitting the counter brings attention to the other person in the room. Nyssa looks tired as she opens a bag to take out rice. "Wasn't expecting you."

 _You and me both_. Leo wants to say. He doesn't, but drinks slowly.

"Hey, Nyssa. I'm not intruding, am I?" Jason steps away from Leo. Neither of them had realized how close he had gotten.

Nyssa shrugs, looking at Leo to read his face. "You're always welcome here. Are you staying for the night?"

"Thank you, but not tonight." Jason scratches at his cheek, hand bumping his glasses. "I should be going soon, bowling with Piper and all that. Leo, you still have an open invite."

"Nah, man. I have chores and stuff." Leo doesn't actually have anything to do. He raises meaningful eyebrows at Nyssa for her to agree with him.

Unfortunately, Nyssa's back is to Leo as she puts away groceries. "It's fine, Leo. Harley got in trouble with that friend of his, so he'll need to do some dishes as punishment anyway- oh." She fidgets uncomfortably when she turns to the other boys.

Perhaps she stopped talking because she might've seen something in Leo's face pleading her to say no. Perhaps she saw Leo's want to be alone at this moment. Maybe she heard the arguing a few minutes earlier and thought better of letting Leo go out with Jason.

Whatever it is, it doesn't matter because Jason grins and tugs on Leo's arm. "Get ready to lose Valdez."

Leo's knees brush against each other making him recoil. "I'm not even wearing pants. Let me change first."

Nyssa mouths _sorry_ when he passes by.

He puts on sweatpants and his winter coat but doesn't go back downstairs. Leo texts Nyssa and opens his window.

And jumps.

* * *

 **ME [17:59]:** nys im going 4 a walk

 **ME [18:00]:** ill b back b4 10 i promise

 **ME [18:00]:** i have money 4 food

 **ME [18:01]:** can u tell jason im feeling sick

 **NYSSA [18:13]:** Be safe, Leo.

 **NYSSA [18:13]:** I'm worried for you.

 **NYSSA [18:15]:** Come home at 9:30.

 **NYSSA [18:16]:** You can always talk to me.

 **NYSSA [18:18]:** …

 **NYSSA [18:18]:** Be safe.

* * *

Leo wanders aimlessly around his town. Dirty snow crunches under his feet, as rain pounds down like a war drum.

He doesn't have anywhere to go. He doesn't really have any friends where he can just drop by and say _Hey! It's just Leo staying over for a few hours to hang out! Hope you don't mind!_

He can make a mental list of everyone he's close with:

1\. Jason and Piper

2.

They're his best friends so that's all Leo's ever really needed. Leo tries adjusting his list a bit to be less exclusive:

Jason and Piper.

Drew.

Nico.

Stolls.

Rachel.

The first three are automatically out, and he doesn't know where the Stolls or Rachel live. Leo heads towards the general direction where he thinks Nico lives. He sends Nico a text ahead of time just to make sure the boy knows he's coming.

Nico doesn't respond. Leo doesn't expect him to.

With all this time, Leo can think. The brisk air is definitely a splash of water over his clouded mind. He doesn't know what the _fuck_ is going on with Jason. He can't talk to Piper about it either.

Leo has no one. He wants to just run to Piper so they could watch movies, or so he could braid her hair, or they can sneak into Drew's room and mess with her things. He wants to text Jason so they could steal Jason's dad's car, or so they could star gaze, or they could dance around each other's rooms listening to TLC and the Spice Girls.

But he can't. Piper would baby him, asking what's wrong when _absolutely nothing is wrong, soleavemealone._ Jason would just yell at him for doing something he _absolutely didn't do, fuck, juststopyellingatme_.

Leo's going to scream.

His thoughts are all jumbled up as he crosses the street and- _stopitstopitstopitSTOPIT-_

A car flies into a stop, as it slams into its breaks. The headlights blind him, and Leo looks up from under his hood. Whoever is in the car honks at Leo, before opening the door.

"Valdez?"


	11. e (2)

**e**

As sad as it is, Coach Hedge might be the closest thing to Leo's father other than Jake. Leo's own _biological_ father isn't even in the running for Leo's dad. And that's just always the way it's been.

Hedge and Leo met when the latter was entering middle school at Wilderness. It was pouring outside one day, and Leo had snuck into a family-owned convenience store for warmth. He was broke and slipped a honey bun into his pocket, stealing it to eat later. There was no real reason for him to steal. Maybe he had felt it would be cool? If he had gone home, Jake would've just as easily made him a snack.

A hand placed itself on his shoulder. "If I were you, I would put that back, cupcake."

Leo had been so embarrassed he got caught, he started bawling his eyes out. Hedge had told him to suck it up, and brought Leo the honey bun anyway.

"Nobody gets anywhere, stealing from other people." He had said, tipping his baseball cap. Leo hadn't really cared at the time, as he was more interested in the free food.

They didn't see each other until Leo's freshman year. Hedge had just become _Coach_ Hedge, as he was CHB's new gym teacher. Leo got detention that same day for skipping gym class to sleep under the bleachers. He was sentenced to cleaning the locker rooms and listening to Hedge singing Katy Perry songs. Leo didn't know which was the punishment.

Over time their hatred for each other grew, but into a more respectful one. Leo never messed with Coach's whistle. Coach never made him do push-ups as a punishment (it's actually embarrassing for both of them).

If Leo did anything seriously wrong, the teachers would leave Hedge to deal with his punishment. He could always set Leo to the right track for the next couple of weeks before someone fell victim to Leo's next craziness.

Unwillingly, Leo's attached to Hedge. Leo knows a few things about Hedge's life that he could only assume none of his peers might know. Hedge knows a few things about Leo's life that couldn't be known from his (thick with misdemeanors) school file.

"Oh, Gleeson! He might be in shock!"

There's a pregnant woman, pushing Leo into the backseat of the car. She's very pretty, a short but petite woman with long dark hair and deep brown eyes. Leo recognizes her from the pictures on Hedge's desk in his office.

Coach Hedge slams his door and turns around in his seat, looking very angry. "WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING, LEO VALDEZ? DO YOU LIKE GETTING HIT BY CARS?"

"Don't yell at him, dear." Leo's mind tells him this is Hedge's wife. Mellie. She's pregnant. Very pregnant. Leo's hands are shaking.

"YOU NEARLY DIED!"

" _Gleeson_. You're scaring him!"

"HE'S SUICIDAL! WHERE'S HIS PARENTS? HE'S LIKE 7, SHOULDN'T HE HAVE A BEDTIME TO CATCH?"

It takes a few minutes for the heat of the car to settle in. Leo's ears are bitten cold with frost, and his hands are still trembling. "I'm okay. Stop yelling at me."

"WHY YOU-" Hedge's so angry, his face is red and he can't finish his sentence. Hedge slams his hands on the driving wheel and fiddles with the radio.

Jesus. Coach Hedge rides a minivan. A fucking 2013 Subaru.

Mellie turns around to look at Leo with sympathetic eyes. "He'll get over it soon. He needs some time to… vent. You must be Leo Valdez."

"Yeah," Leo looks at the car doors. They're locked, so he can't get out. "Pleased to meet you."

Both of them ignore the frustrated thumping Hedge is making as he hits his hands and head on the steering wheel. Mellie digs in her bag to hold up a smartphone. "Do you need to call your parents? We can drop you home if you'll like."

"No, thank you, I have a phone," Leo remembers his manners. "My sister knows I'm out, but I'll call home to tell them I have a ride home. She probably went crazy once it started raining."

"Oh," Mellie nods and turns to her husband. "Make sure she knows that you're safe with us. I'm sure she knows Gleeson."

Leo wants to laugh because, _yes_ Nyssa has had enough calls from the coach about Leo to last a lifetime.

Leo dials home and it's Jake who picks up.

"Leo? Is that you?"

"Yeah," Leo looks out the window. It's dark out, but Leo could see the rain from the light of the stoplight on the side of the street. "I'm in my Coach's car. Coach Hedge."

"... The screaming one?"

"Yep."

Jake snickers. "Why?"

Leo sighs. "I nearly got hit by a car. But I'm okay, so don't worry about me! Don't tell Nyssa though, she might rip me a new one."

There's the television on in the background with Jake. A sitcom by the sounds of the fake laughter. "She just might. You should come home, it's pretty late."

Leo glances at the radio at the front of the car. "It's only 8:30. Nyssa promised me until 9:30. I'll be careful, I promise."

"You better be. Ah, that would be Harley being nosy again. When I got home, he practically ran me over." Jake says something to Harley that Leo can't hear. "Alright, bro. Head home soon. Bye."

"Bye."

Coach Hedge looks calm enough to drive like a sane person. "We're taking you home, Valdez."

Leo shrugs. He could always run out as soon as they dropped him off.

Hedge shifts the car into drive. It's fairly quiet except for the drumming of rain against the minivan, and the low hum of a late night talk show on the radio.

They pass by a diner that Leo stares at with wanting eyes. Mellie asks the question.

"Are you hungry, Leo?"

"No." Leo's stomach howls like a coyote, just loud enough for the adults to hear.

Mellie smiles wearily as Coach Hedge grumbles something, and pulls the car into a U-turn. They're heading down to a part of town that Leo is only faintly familiar with. It's a neighborhood filled with small but long homes covered with huge trees and rows of bushes.

When they pull into a driveway, Leo is very astutely aware this is not his house nor is it a food establishment.

"Our home," Mellie seems to read his mind, as she watches Hedge jog from one side of the car to the other. He opens the door for her. "We don't have guests very often, but it's nice sometimes."

There's a wet gardening gnome staring at Leo from the front lawn. Its cherubic smile is bright and happy. The path leading to the front lawn is littered with pinwheels and small statues of mythical animals and babies kissing and whatnot. Leo stares openly.

Their front porch is windpipes galore. They all whistle so many tunes, it's a discordant symphony of beauty. There's a mat that says _Home is where the heart is_.

Inside the home is even worse. Filled with endless decorations that could only be done by a middle-aged stay at home mom who had _way_ too much time on her hand and _way_ too many decor magazines. Leo slips off his shoes, only to place them on a shelf with a little ceramic baby telling him something about politeness and dirty shoes on a sign.

Mellie takes his coat for him, directing him towards the living room. "Gleeson made soup earlier, which might do you some good."

Leo sits in a room filled with too many trinkets. The couch is a cozy burgundy one that Leo sinks into like he's drowning in quicksand. He can't believe Coach Hedge lives here.

Mellie comes in with glasses of lemonade. "If you don't mind me asking, but why were you outside at this time? It's dangerous, especially in the rain and with your black coat. It was a miracle we saw you when we did."

"No, it's fine." Leo accepts a glass. "I needed to clear my head so I took a walk."

Mellie lightly pats her hand on his knee. "You need to be safer, Leo. I'm not sure if it's hit you yet, but you could've died out there."

"Oh," Leo says. "I guess."

Mellie's eyebrows furrow. "You guess? Your life is sacred, treasure it please." She rubs her hand on her stomach. "Life is so small and precious…"

Leo places his cup down on a magazine covered coffee table. It makes a wet ring around a model's face for a sporting goods magazine. He feels guilty like he had purposely tried to get hurt, and is now being shunned for doing so. "You have a lovely home, Ms. Hedge."

She laughs. "Please, just call me Mellie, all my friends do. And any friend of my husband's is a friend of mine."

"We're not really friends-"

"Nonsense," She waves her hand to interrupt Leo. "You and Gleeson have so much in common. He was just like you when he was your age. He respects you, and thinks fondly of you."

Oh. Leo blinks.

"You can't believe the stories! His first week of work, a kid sucks all the air out of every single football and basketball in the gym. The same kid who had just been cleaning the lockers as punishment a few days earlier!" Mellie's eyes gleam with thinly veiled joy. Her voice is very light, and her laughter sounds airy and like bells. "He was so angry and confused, he came home and watched baseball non-stop! And when I came home, he turned to me with such a bewildered look and said, _Mels? I think I just lost my balls_."

Leo laughs with her. "I remember that day. I had to miss my first couple of classes just to do that. Nearly got detention for a month, but it was worth it."

"Ha ha!" Mellie's giggling subsides, as she wipes a tear from her eyes. "You must know, Hedge thinks well of you. He knows you're a good kid."

"Thank you."

"Ah. It's so nice having company around," Mellie looks up when Hedge comes in, balancing three bowls in his arms. "We don't normally have many coming around, as I said earlier."

"That's the way I like it!" Coach Hedge says proudly. He sits on the other couch, slurping food quickly.

"I'm sure you can imagine why it's often so," Mellie glances at her husband, trying to find the right word for it. " _Isolated_."

"Not like we need them anyway, sweet pea," Coach Hedge huffs. Maybe he's very aware of his off-putting characteristics. "We already got one on the way, so it'll be crowded soon."

"Mhm," Mellie says absentmindedly. She rubs her stomach and lets out a soft sigh. Leo wonders if it's a sigh because she's happy for her upcoming child, or because she wants more friends to be around. Leo can only imagine what it's like to live with only Hedge as company.

As far as Leo knows, Coach Hedge's wife is an assistant. Leo never really asked who her employer was, simply because he didn't really care at the time. It felt like useless information, but now Leo's interested. It's weird seeing people outside of school having a life as complicated as Leo's own.

Leo's stomach growls, but he doesn't want to eat someone else's food without knowing if he'll like it or not. Coach Hedge notices this.

"It's spicy, kid." Coach Hedge jabs his spoon in Leo's direction. "You like spicy, don't you?"

Leo's not sure if Coach actually knows that or if it's subtle racism. He scoops up some of the soup, gathering the broth up ready to swallow.

It's delicious.

"Hmph," Coach Hedge looks satisfied when Leo practically starts breathing in the meal. "You need some meat on them bones of yours, you little scrawny twig. Your siblings feed you at home?"

"Honey, don't intrude." Mellie looks at him sharply. Her bowl looks to have a healthier version of whatever Leo's eating. "I'm sure Leo gets treated very nicely at home."

"Mysh siblingsh feef mef." Leo swallows, wiping his mouth with his arm. "My siblings feed me."

"So what," Hedge looks on with thinly veiled interest. His voice is still above normal conversation level. "You got kicked out or somethin'?"

" _Gleeson._ " Mellie sets her bowl down on the coffee table in front of her. "We shouldn't get involved in other people's personal lives-"

"No, I'm not homeless. I just got frustrated and went for a walk." Leo puts down his bowl as well. "I should be heading back soon, anyway."

"Oh, dear," Mellie says _dear_ like she's Leo's mother worrying about him. Leo doesn't have any doubt she'll be a good mother. His own mother used to say it the same way. _Oh, mijo_.

Leo stands up. "I really should be going soon. Thank you for the lovely dinner. Your home is beautiful."

"Yeah yeah," Coach Hedge stands up with him too. He's shorter than Leo, which Leo knows probably annoys him very much. "I'll drive you home. Can't turn on the news in the morning to find some punk ended up as a road smear. Especially a punk who is a new track team member."

Leo saw the results posted outside the gym. It's ridiculous but he's on the team. Meets are unbelievably every day except Sundays, Thursdays, and Fridays. Who goes to school for sports on _Saturdays_?

"Thanks," Leo says. He gathers his dirty dishes, only to turn around and find Coach Hedge staring at him.

"Don't mention it, Leo." Hedge says intensely. "Seriously. Don't mention it."

* * *

Piper's very excited to see Leo the next time he comes over.

He stops over only out of obligation, and because he can't ignore the pounding fear he has whenever he walks past her home.

"Leo, shush." Piper pulls him along through the house as if Leo hasn't been ignoring her in weeks. "Look, _look_."

Even though they live next door, Piper's house is evidently bigger. It has more rooms, but the layout is very similar. Somehow Piper's family can afford it, considering her mother is only a hair stylist with her own shop downtown.

Piper's father is away, last Leo's heard from Piper's update. Working on a project. Leo remembers something about abs. Drew's father isn't around. He died, when Drew was a baby, from an overdose. Months later, Piper is born.

Most people don't think they're siblings because of their obviously different skin tones. Drew got her pale skin tone from her Japanese father, and Piper's Native American background gave her darker skin. They both have the same button nose and build. Heavier on the hips, not as much at the chest. (Leo admires these traits with very close eyes. Not so much with Piper because that would be like looking at _Nyssa_ , but he can definitely leer at Drew from time to time.)

"Drew's out the house," Piper explains. "And I was messing around when I found her studio open. She's getting really good and- See."

Piper pushes open the door, and Leo finds himself staring at Rachel Elizabeth Dare.

Except not really.

It's an oil painting of her- a really _good_ oil painting of her. There are lots of colors from the bright reds of her hair to the individual speckles of paint to create freckles. It's beautiful. Leo wants to see it up in an art museum.

Rachel's laughing wildly, while the painting is only focused from her shoulders up. The canvas itself is huge and must've cost a lot of money. If it were to stand on the ground, it might reach Leo's chin.

"You think it's based off someone?" Piper's saying, as she circles the canvas. She steps cautiously on the newspapers that litter the floor to keep paint from dripping on the wood underneath. The window is open, sending in a light that makes the art piece look so much more alive. "Or maybe someone made up from Drew's head?"

"It's good-" Leo's foot hits a can of paint. On top of the can, was a folder the was previously balanced until it gets knocked off. The contents spill out onto the newspapers. "Huh."

Leo squats, flipping through the items. There are pictures of Rachel, probably to help model for this masterpiece. There are endless amounts of drafts to projects that don't look like they'll ever be finished. A photo sticks out to Leo the most.

"You know her?" Leo holds up the picture. It's an older one with Drew, her mother, and a man and some girl Leo has never seen before.

Piper looks over Leo's shoulder. She snatches it away, examining it with greedy eyes. "I _would_ be alive at the time. See, Drew's like 5 here. And we're barely a year apart."

Leo resists the urge to steal back the picture. Stealing it would be selfish, considering he has no ties to anyone in the image. Leo points at the girl. "She kind of looks like you."

"Yeah, but," Piper squints. "I've never seen her before in my life."

"Maybe she's your long-lost sister," Leo snorts, waggling his fingers at her. " _Ooooh_."

"Leo quit it." Piper pulls out her phone to take a photo of the picture. She slides it back in with Drew's folder of stuff. "Come on, let's get out of here before you spill something."

"I wasn't going to spill anything," Leo says when they get to the safety of Piper's room. It smells like the usual flowery vanilla that it normally does. Leo doesn't know why he thought it would smell differently.

Piper dances past Leo and jumps on her bed. " _Sure_. How are you, by the way?"

"What?" Leo sits on the floor, stretching his legs out in front of him. His toes curl and uncurl slowly.

Piper rolls over until she's looking at Leo. She props her cheek on a fist. "How are you? How's life? Haven't seen you much."

"Oh," It's not like Leo was originally trying to avoid Piper. It just leads to him later _intentionally_ avoiding her. Does that make him a bad friend? A bad _best_ friend? "Good, I guess. Nothing much really. How about you?"

"Nothing interesting." She doesn't sound too spiteful that Leo doesn't have anything to share. Then Piper's eyes light up. "Winter break is coming up. Me and Jason-"

"-Jason and I-"

"- were planning a road trip. We were inviting you, but we couldn't get a hold of you. What do you say, all three of us, together again?"

Leo hasn't left his little bubble of a town in years. Last time he left was a long trip to Disney World in Florida, and that was 4 years ago when he was 13. Nyssa swore to never go on a trip with them ever again because dealing with Harley's whining about the bathroom and Leo's singing to the radio was too much for someone to handle. it was a good trip though. His dad crawled out of his hermit hole and drove happily. Leo still remembers the taste of cotton candy and the sweltering heat while standing in line.

"Technically Jason's 18, so he can drive for a little bit without supervision," Piper goes on. "But my mom is coming if that helps. She'll drive and be responsible."

Leo rolls her eyes. "Your mom is so not responsible."

"Yeah, but Nyssa doesn't know that." Both Piper and Leo are very much aware that as soon as Piper's mom finds a new store to shop at, she's not going to be seen around much after that.

It's not fair that the three of them don't have good parents. Piper's the luckiest, as sad as it is. Her mother _does_ try, but Piper doesn't really like associating herself with her. Leo wants to slap some sense into her, to make Piper _appreciate_ her mother while she's still there. Although Piper would pretty much kick his ass if he even lays a finger on her.

Maybe Jason would kick his ass too.

Though secretly, Leo thinks Jason might resent Piper. Not too much, but maybe just a bit. Piper's got a mother who cares for her, a father who loves her, and a sister who might love Piper more than she seems to. That's a lot more than Jason's got.

Leo supposes it'll be nice to have a family like that. He does have a father, although one somehow more absent than even Jason's busy own. Which is crazy, because Leo's father is probably in the garage right now, and so very in reach. And Leo hasn't seen him in months.

"I'll talk to Nyssa about it."

Because that's all Leo really can do.

"Cool! I'm so pumped. Ready for Jason's shitty pop music selections? I love him and all, but _honestly_ I'm a bit sick of the Katy Perry. Too much California Girls."

"I was born ready."


	12. a

**a**

"Hey." Leo looks up from his calculations to see Annabeth Chase standing over him. "Need some help?"

"Uh," Leo covers his scribbled numbers and equations. "No thanks."

"No, seriously," Annabeth perches herself on the desk and gives a little tug to Leo's paper. "I already finished, and it gets boring sitting here for the rest of the class period."

"Oh," Leo's heard about how brilliant Annabeth is in literally everything that uses her mind. He guesses AP Stat wouldn't be different. He releases his paper for Annabeth to go over. "Sorry about the handwriting though…"

Annabeth's eyebrows furrow as she flips the page back and forth. "This is really-"

"-messy and wrong, _I know_ -"

"-Good. You did everything right. Except for question 7, but the rest seems good." Annabeth places her own work next to Leo's for comparison. It's not as neat or legible as Leo had expected. "See?"

Leo points at Annabeth's number seven. You're supposed to explain and prove why Billy (the fictional student of the 3 part problem) is wrong. Except Annabeth's writing blends together to make a single run on sentence that doesn't make much sense. "What is this?"

"Huh?" Annabeth looks it over and bites her lip. "I think it's okay."

It's not in Leo's place to correct Annabeth's writing, considering this _is_ a mathematics class. He focuses on her final answer instead and fixes his own. "Thanks, then."

"What?" Annabeth looks up and nods. "Oh, yeah. No problem. It's boring always being the first ones done. I normally just work on other things, but I don't have anything to do today."

"Yeah," Leo taps his pencil on the desk. He eyes the other classmates who are slowly making their way along with their papers. Most of them were poorly disguising being off-task with talking to their friends 'about the problems'. "I normally just stare at the windows or something. Maybe text my friends."

"Can I see your phone?" Annabeth doesn't make fun of Leo for the flip phone he produces. She hands it back after some time. "I added my contact information."

Her back pocket vibrates against the table. "And now, I have your number."

"Smart," Leo admits. "But why…"

Annabeth tucks her pencil behind her ear. "You _will_ need help with the Robotics project. You can't just expect an entire group to put all this stress on one person."

The words are comforting a person who didn't need it. Leo actually kind of _wanted_ the entire project to himself. He's not even an official member of the team, but his hands itch to get to calculating.

"Thanks then. I'll call you when I need it."

"No problem." Annabeth smiles. "If you need anything, just ask."

"Noted."

"See you after school, then?"

"Of course."

* * *

The sound of pages flipping sounds through the air, as chalk squeaks against the board.

"Would someone read the next few lines? Miss Gardener, if you'd please."

Leo sighs, as he taps the desk with his finger. Outside the quiet classroom was the leftovers of the snow from last week. Normally he would go with Piper and Jason to mess around in the snow. Except...

To Leo's right, Jason sits looking fully immersed in the class book. He hadn't spoken a word to Leo since the bell rang. If anything, the other had moved his desk a few centimeters _away_ from Leo.

Jason's bicep bulges as he writes something down in his notebook. His eyes squint as they try to concentrate on the words he's reading. Jason's glasses are missing. Which Leo would normally tease him about, but he felt would seem out of place right now.

If he made a joke would Jason think he's trying too hard? Would Jason still laugh at his jokes? Would Jason just ignore him? Leo should have never ran out like that a few days ago. He's so _dumb_.

"Mr. Grace, can you tell us what this line means?"

Jason clears his throat. Leo's eyes slide lazily from his eyes to his mouth. "The author is saying that when someone's life is falling apart, they can't do much but stare and let it happen."

"Of course. Mr. Valdez?"

"Uhm," Leo tries to read the board to get some type of clue what's going on. He feels Jason's staring, and his tongue starts feeling heavy in his mouth. "I think Jason's got most of it covered."

"Nothing to add?"

"Nope." The quote on the board is written in wide cursive with giant loops and small dotted i's. _The loneliest moment in someone's life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly_.

"Can you explain the origins of the quote?" His teacher is persistent in making Leo talk. Like most teachers, she hates kids who don't pay attention. Leo happens to be one of the worst perpetrators of this.

"No."

"Mr. Grace? You?" Even though Jason indulges in Leo's craziness _so much_ during class, teachers love him. It's unfair.

"The quote is supposedly written somewhere in the book, but it's hard to find. Lost, just like the character it's describing." Jason's eyes probe at Leo until the very last word.

"Excellent wording, Mr. Grace."

"Thank you." Blue eyes turn back to the front. Leo shifts in his seat.

Pages flip again, with chalk squeaking even louder against the board.

* * *

Leo doesn't even like carrots, but his lunch tray is filled with them. Piper and Jason both love carrots. Leo? Not as much.

He's considering this his offering of forgiveness. As normal, Jason and Piper are already sitting at the table they've sat at since freshman year. Oddly enough Piper's sitting on the opposite of her usual seat, but Leo had expected it to happen eventually. A girlfriend _would_ want to sit next to her boyfriend. Not next to Leo.

"What's this for?" Piper reaches for a baby carrot. "What'd you do?"

"Nothing," Leo says coolly. He stares meaningfully at Jason. "Just wanted to be a good friend and all."

It's the first words Jason says to him in days. When he opens his mouth, Leo holds his breath. "Did you get ranch?"

It's… a start. A _good_ start. Leo beams, and shifts the tray. "Yep, all squeezed out in its own little square."

Piper slides over a bag of chips. "Guess what."

"I'm guessing."

Piper rolls her eyes but is still eager to share what she was planning on saying. "Okay, so you know how winter break is going to be all of us on a road trip. To _where,_ you may ask? Well, a couple of towns over there's going to be this secret show at this not very known place. And I mean, it's an _underground_ show. It took me weeks to find it."

"That sounds cool," Jason says. In front of him is a poorly made sandwich and Physics homework. "Who's playing?"

"That's the thing. It's fucking _Hestia_."

"Whoa. You love Hestia." Leo dips one of his fries into ketchup. This is nice. This is something he can work with. Piper getting excited is a good and familiar thing.

"Her songs are amazing," Piper says with as much earnest love as one can produce for a singer. "They just speak to you, right?"

"They're depressing," Jason admits. "But good. She has nice rhythms to go along with them."

"I'm more of a Nicki Minaj type of person." Leo shrugs. "But I can deal with her music."

"You guys are the best," Piper reaches over to squeeze Leo in a hug, and kisses Jason on the cheek. "I wasn't sure how you would feel about it, but-"

"- Anything for you, man," Leo says. Because he means it.

Jason frowns. "Yeah, anything. But Leo, I didn't know you were coming. You're going on the trip with us?"

"I don't know. Kinda depends on Nyssa."

"Oh."

Piper groans. "Just remembered. _Drew_ is coming. Mom doesn't want to leave her in an empty house for an extended period of time."

Both Jason and Piper look constipated at the thought. Drew _can_ be a bit bothersome at times. But Leo didn't really mind. It's a new feeling because if this conversation was happening last year, Leo would be complaining the most. But now? Leo's okay with it.

"Where _is_ the queen, anyway?" Leo glances around the cafeteria. Drew is nowhere in sight. Her normal friends are sitting in the spots they normally do, but carry on merrily without her.

Piper turns around to see where Leo's looking. "Not sure. I think her boyfriend broke up with her or something. She's been acting weird for a while."

"She had a boyfriend?" Jason asks. Leo didn't notice it earlier, but Jason's left arm is wrapped around Piper's waist.

"Yeah. I've never seen him, but I've heard her whispering on the phone. But she hasn't done it in a while, so I guess something happened." Piper shrugs and picks at a scab on her arm. Jason leans down and nips at her ear.

Leo's instinct is to look away. Every slow chew of French Fries turns to cement dripping down his throat and through his intestines. He blames the grease, even though the fries are more potato than fry.

"Yuck, keep the PDA to a minimum." Leo laughs. When he looks up, Piper's smiling and leaning against Jason's shoulder. "I only wanted the food, not a show."

Piper sticks out her tongue and Jason smirks.

Leo's insides are already upside down. There are no butterflies. Just emptiness.

* * *

For some reason, Nico's really good at ice skating. Rachel's only a smidge worse, but even that's amazing. The Stolls (or at least Travis) are even worse than Leo, who hasn't ice skated since he was six.

Leo's not sure why he was invited, but the sticky notes he found in his locker from Connor seemed inviting. It's not like he had much planned- practice had ended early due to Coach having a relative coming over.

Nico looks delicate and fragile as he's bundled up in his coat and scarf. He and Rachel make ice skating an art. They travel together around the track, with a flourish that the other skaters appreciate. A wobbly looking Connor follows with flailing arms and loud yelling. By the time Connor can make a full lap, Nico and Rachel have done three.

Leo is left with Travis. Travis' arm is around Leo's waist to hold on, with his body pressed close enough to feel the warmth emanating from between them. Travis makes little puffs of air as he tries to learn how to skate with Leo as his coach.

"To be honest, I'm not even good at it. Rachel can skate backwards." Leo says, helping Travis get his balance after another fall.

"She looks busy. Besides, I wanted _you_ to teach me," Travis looks down at Leo. Their height difference annoys Leo a little because Travis is tall and appropriately lanky but Leo looks like Pinocchio just became a real boy. He's so awkward and not sure what to do with himself.

"I think I got it," Travis mumbles, hooking his arm through Leo's. "But make sure I don't fall again."

They glide for a few quiet minutes before Travis somehow slides into the wall.

"S'not funny." He groans when he sits on the ice.

"Okay," Leo giggles into his scarf. "Do you wanna go, or…?"

"Yeah, I'm done," Travis lets Leo lift him up, and guide him to the nearest exit. Travis groans once he gets on a bench, taking off the rentals immediately. "Ice skating sucks. I'm not sure why I thought I could get better."

"It's not _too_ bad. But I can't wait for summer."

"Man, I _love_ summer. All the beaches and heat and ice cream." Travis grins at Leo. "You wanna catch something to eat? I think there's a place down the street."

"What about the rest of them?" Leo nods towards their friends. Connor is trying (and failing) to do a figure eight. Rachel's laughter drifts towards them, and it leaves Leo snickering along.

"I'll leave a text," Travis grabs Leo by the arms to pull him up. He winks, "Besides I owe you for those skating lessons."

"I doubt telling you to bend your knees, and then pushing you across the ice is considered skating lessons." Leo laughs and follows Travis towards the booth to put back the rentals. They leave the park and stroll towards the diner that Travis seemed to like.

Seated in a comfortable booth, Travis sighs in relief. "It's so warm in here."

"It _is_ winter."

"Yeah, but," Travis folds his arms behind his head and leans back. "I don't know, man."

Leo feels so comfortable talking to Travis. It feels good and natural to be sitting here laughing and talking. They order from the kids menu, and blow bubbles in their Coke's.

"They're both chicken, right? But tenders taste so much better than nuggets."

Leo pokes his straw at Travis. "You totally get me. I told Piper that, and she said they taste the same."

Travis gives out a horrified gasp. "You gotta tell this Piper chick she's so wrong. Is she your girlfriend or something?"

Leo chokes on air. He coughs and coughs until his breathing can get back to normal. He snickers, because _jeez if Piper was his girlfriend_. That's just so…

"Me and Pipes? Nah." Leo's starting to entertain the idea in his head. Yes, he's sure that Piper and he might make a very good couple. They're already close best friends, so all they need is the kissing. They actually kissed once- a pitiful one where Leo was feeling like shit and Piper was the one to help him out.

Romantically, Leo's just not that into her. He wishes it could be that easy. Why couldn't he just like Piper McLean like a normal teenage boy?

"Oh that's cool," Travis looks away. He shrugs with a smile. "Who needs girls, am I right?"

You have no idea. "Yeah."

They clink glasses and eat quietly. The other patrons in the restaurant talk excitedly, but in low muted tones that count as background noise. There's a TV hanging in the corner behind Travis that's showing a baseball game.

"You know what college you're going to?" Travis asks, mid-chew. "You're going to leave soon…"

"Nah," Leo stirs ketchup around his plate with a fry. "Haven't gotten anything back yet. I'll probably go to New Rome or something."

Travis burps, which Leo counter attacks with a louder burp. "Gross, I can smell the ketchup off you. But New Rome, that's cool. It's pretty close though."

"I guess." Leo sighs. He props his cheek on his fist. "I don't know, man. My friends want me to go, but I'm not sure anymore..."

The other's blue eyes light up. He makes grand motions with his arms. "You've got to get out of this place, dude! Go somewhere or something."

"It's not that easy."

"Sure it is! Did you apply anywhere else outside of this general area?"

Leo mentally goes over all 6 of his applications. Travis makes him wish he hadn't been so lazy or indecisive. Maybe he screwed up. "A few places. California. Massachusetts."

"Nice," Travis is basically bouncing in his seat. "I can't wait until I'm out of here. This place is suffocating."

"You're a sophomore, right? Get good grades and you'll be out."

Travis looks sheepish as he runs a hand through his hair. "Junior, actually. Connor's a sophomore."

"So, not twins?"

"Not twins."

"Cool. It's going to suck though. When you leave Connor here by himself."

Travis puffs up his cheeks, only to slow the air back out. "Yeah. We talked about it a bit, but not a lot. He wants me to go to New Rome so we can be within an hour drive, but I don't think I want to go there."

"Wow. That's fucked up."

"You just said the same thing a few minutes ago!"

"Yeah? But I'm probably not even going through with it. You sound pretty confident."

Travis deflates from his defensive posture. He mirrors Leo and balances his own cheek in his hand. "I'm not staying here though. And Connor has to accept it."

Leo thinks over Travis' words. "Perhaps. Or you can make him happy by staying."

Travis folds his arms and stares. "I could. But it wouldn't make _me_ happy."

Leo doesn't have anything to say to that. The waiter comes and refills their drinks. After thanking the man, Leo fiddles with the salt shaker.

"Do you think you'll be happy?" Leo finally says. He nearly goes red to find out that Travis had still been gazing at him. Travis shifts his eyes from Leo towards something behind him. He frowns.

"Watch out, I'm coming over there," Travis says, getting up, and moving to Leo's side of the booth. Leo's about to ask why, when Connor, Nico, and Rachel sit on the other side of the booth. They come in as a huddle of pink noses and coats unzipping.

"Dude, it's _so_ warm in here!" Connor exclaims, pulling his hat off.

"That's what I said!" Travis yells back, and the two siblings do some sort of handshake that's more hand slapping and finger wiggling than a handshake.

Nico sits in between Connor and Rachel. He rubs his hands together to warm them up. Rachel is loud as she calls for the waiter to come back for the duo-turned-quintet. She orders ice cream for everyone.

Nico grimaces. "Ice cream?"

"What?" Rachel says defensively. "It's good!"

Nico slaps his palm against his face. He asks if they have coffee.

Connor's explaining everything that happened after Leo and Travis left. Apparently, after listening to another 3 minutes of Connor's pleading, Nico finally showed Connor how to perfect his skating style. Then, Rachel got into an argument with another teenager ("He's a dick from SPQR," Rachel sneers) that eventually lead into a very unsafe race. Rachel won, and Connor did a slow and shaky figure 8 for her.

"That's great," Leo applauds after Connor is done with his tale. "You've _got_ to show me your figure 8 then."

Connor laughs awkwardly. His eyes dart between Leo and Travis. "Ha ha, maybe. So what have you two been doing?"

"Just talking about stuff," Travis says, leaning on his elbows. "Asking for tips on the SAT's and stuff like that."

Rachel rolls her eyes and points an accusatory finger at Travis. "I've completed too many workbooks and study sessions, where you just lay around and play video games on my couch."

"Which is why he needs the advice," Nico adds in.

Connor nods fervently. "Maybe Leo should tutor Travis."

Travis turns into a stuttering and flushed mess of many _"No"_ 's and " _Oh, he's so busy!_ " 's. Leo shrugs apologetically. "Sorry, I've actually have a bunch of things to do now."

"What things?" Nico asks. He's on his third cup of coffee and it's only been ten minutes.

Leo sighs counting off on his fingers as he lists them, "Well one, there's some kind of robot I'm working on with the Robotics club-"

"-There's a Robotics Club?" Travis interjects sourly.

Rachel throws a sugar packet at him.

"- then, there's the whole running track thing. Hedge is trying to ease me into it. Now, I'm being invited to go with my friends to some road trip to who knows where. Then by the time, I come back in January, the entire senior and junior years are going to be _prom crazy_. But I also have to worry about AP tests by May. Somewhere in between then, all my acceptance and non-acceptance letters would flood in. So yeah, I'm a bit busy."

There's an awkward silence that fogs over the table. The waiter comes back to put down a check.

Rachel cracks the silence, as she spoons her ice cream. "You're going to prom?"

"I don't know." Leo's incredulous that out of everything, _that's_ what sticks out to Rachel Elizabeth Dare.

"Hmm," Rachel taps something on her phone. She frowns. "I mean, prom is pretty big, and it's every girl's dream to go."

"Not this again," Travis mumbles from Leo's side. Connor's texting someone on his phone. Nico doesn't look the least bit interested in the conversation, but more interested in the coffee in front of him.

"Are _you_ going?" Leo asks because he's the only one who will.

Rachel holds her hand over her forehead as if going to faint. "Me? You've never met my dad. The day I go to prom is the day _he_ gets pregnant. But yeah, I'm going."

"Sneaking out?"

"Sneaking out." Rachel points her spoon at Leo. "You can't just _miss_ prom. I'm having Drew pick me up and get changed in her car."

"Drew, huh," Leo finds this tidbit interesting. "You're close with Drew?"

Rachel shrugs. "More or less. We've been friends for a while, and we're getting closer now."

Leo nods. He wouldn't think Drew had any friends who were _really_ her friends. She's also never heard Drew mention Rachel in his entire life. It's only been through recent discovery, this year, when Leo realized that Drew is a person whose life is just as complicated as Leo's.

Not that Leo's life is complicated.

"Are you going?" Rachel asks Travis.

Travis's eyes go to each person, starting with Connor then ending with Leo. He leans back and laughs. "Maybe. We'll have to sneak Con in though."

"Bro." They fist bump and laugh gleefully.

It makes Leo wonder. If Travis loves his brother so much, why does he want to leave him? _How_ could he leave him?

Can Leo do it too?

* * *

Leo pets Festus reassuringly. The dog lets out a slow groan and puts her head back down.

"What's wrong, girl?" Leo mumbles, and fold his legs up.

Harley bounces on the couch. "Festus is sick. She's so _lazy_."

"It's nearly 11, aren't you supposed to be in bed?" Leo shoves Harley off the couch. Harley collapses into a puddle of limbs on the carpet. He rolls onto his back and gasps.

"You're so mean," Harley whines. "Besides, Nyssa said I could stay up."

"She did _not._ "

"Did too!"

"Did not."

"Did too!"

"Did not."

"She did too!" Harley sits up. He makes a grab for the remote that was seated in Leo's lap. "She also said I could watch TV!"

"Now I know you're lying." Leo holds the remote over his head. When Harley stands up, Leo puts his other hand on Harley's chest to keep him away. "Go to bed, you little Gremlin."

"Give it to me!" Harley tries to climb on Leo like a monkey. He is, evidently part monkey, as he manages to grapple away the remote.

"I'm telling on you," Leo says. "Nyssa's going to be very mad."

Harley's jaw drops open. "You _wouldn't_."

" _Nyssaaaaaa! Nyyyyyssaaaaaa!_ " Leo calls out loudly. It's not loud enough to get Nyssa's attention from her bedroom, but Harley doesn't know that. At worse, Jake would come out and take the remote to watch a documentary. "Nys-mmph!"

Harley's eyes are wide. " _Shhhhhhh!_ "

Leo stares at him. It takes only a second later for Harley to scream and flip over to the other side of the couch. Harley jumps up and down, shaking his hand. "You licked me! You _licked_ me!"

Leo reaches down to pet Festus again. If she really _is_ sick, he'll have to take her to the vet this week or the next. Festus is a bit old, so these may just be symptoms of old age.

Harley finally settles down, spreading himself along the couch. His head places itself against Leo's thigh. The television gets turned on to a dumb cartoon Leo refuses to admit he likes.

It's well into the night when Leo hears rustling. He lowers the volume, and he hears it again. The sound of the fridge opening and closing and cabinets being shut.

Leo shakes Harley awake and shushes him. "I think there's someone in the house."

It couldn't possibly be Nyssa- she would've yelled at them to go to bed as soon as she saw the two of them up. Definitely not Jake, who would've stopped by and asked what they're watching.

The kitchen has three doorways. One is the back door, leading out to the yard. Then there's the door that's always shut because it leads to the basement that no one is to go to without explicit permission from Jake. The other doorway just leads to the hallway.

"Is that Nyssa?" Harly mumbles, rubbing his eyes. "I'm going back to bed."

"No," Leo shakes Harley harder. "Let's go see if it's a murderer. Or a _ghost_."

Harley grows paler than a sheet. In all honesty, it was a bit mean to say that. Harley's fear of ghosts is so bad that he can't even watch _Casper the Friendly Ghost._ Even watching _Scooby Doo_ is a reluctant thing for him.

Leo tiptoes towards the kitchen. He had grabbed the letter opener and a pillow as a shield. Harley stood behind him, trembling.

"Okay on the count of three, I'll attack and you'll turn on the light," Leo whispers to Harley. Because the lights were off in the kitchen, all Leo could see was a big and burly mass at the countertops. A glint of light reflects from his hand, showing a butter knife."One."

" _Leo_." Harley tugs on his shirt.

"Two…"

"Three!" Leo charges into the room, holding the point of his letter opener to the intruder's chest.

The intruder doesn't do much but backs away into the corner where Leo has him trapped. The light flickers on, and Leo steps away.

" _Dad?_ "


	13. s

**s**

He sinks his body into the water, letting the fruity aroma drift over him.

There's something relaxing about a bath at night. It's not something Leo does regularly, so it's a nice chance to actually unwind. Leo's alone to only himself, and there's no one to bother him. The steam of the water has already fogged up the mirror.

The bathtub is small enough that leaning his head back in the bubbles, would let his knees stick out like bobbing apples in the water. The tub itself is claustrophobic except it suffocates Leo with his thoughts.

He's actually crying though. Not sobbing- but salty tears fall freely and drip into the water. The weird thing is, Leo doesn't know _why_ he's crying. What kind of freak cries for no reason?

He's so fucked up. There's nothing to cry about- there's nothing to even feel _sad_ about. Leo's a normal teenage boy with all the same problems as everyone else. He's not special.

Every morning he checks for zits. In class, he dreads getting called on. He makes jokes that aren't that funny. He avoids chores like the plague. Leo does nothing different from any other average teenager. That's what he is.

Average.

Yet here he is. Crying into his own bath. He's so pathetic.

Leo ducks his head under the water. For the slightest second, he wonders if he should just drown. It's easy enough. It'll be fast. He dismisses the thought quickly, because it's stupid, and if he gets any more weird thoughts he will officially be a freak of nature.

Through the painfully soapy water stinging his eyes, Leo could see the bathroom light sending an almost ethereal glow through the water.

He doesn't do anything. Leo returns up gasping for air a few seconds later.

Stepping out of the bath, he feels so cold. So cold and alone.

* * *

The last day of school before winter break is nice.

"Merry Christmas!" The Stolls chorus together. They have on disgusting matching wool sweaters, Travis' red and Connor's green.

"I'm not Christian," Leo says.

"Who is?" Nico rolls his eyes. "People only get festive to show how much of a good time they can have. It's bragging but through the use of religion. Jesus wasn't even born in December."

"Don't mind him," Rachel passes by, with a coffee mug in hand. She also wears a winter-themed sweater, although a bit more tasteful than the Stolls. It's red with Christmas lights across the shoulders and chest. "He's just mad because he never gets what he really desires."

"Which is?" Leo leans over his school lunch.

Rachel's eyes are alight with mischief. "Something to take that stick out of his-"

"Shut up," Nico cuts in, sending the rest of the teens into giggles. He pulls at his sweater- a black one with a skeleton Santa Claus dancing around. Oddly reminiscent of _The Nightmare Before Christmas_. "Did you all bring the gifts?"

Just like Leo wasn't aware that today must be sweater day, he wasn't aware to bring gifts. His embarrassment must be bleeding all over his face because Rachel laughs.

"Don't worry! It was a surprise." Rachel digs through her bag to pull out small and wonderfully wrapped presents. Connor and Travis left the room a few moments before, and come in dragging a suspicious black garbage bag. Nico only holds thin looking envelopes.

"Leo gets to choose! Oldest or youngest?" Travis plops next to Leo. His knee knocks against Leo, spreading warmth from that one area. Leo doesn't move his leg.

He shrugs. "Youngest?"

Nico scowls. "I feel victimized today."

"It's cause you're loved," Leo winks. "Although, sometimes it surprises me that you _are_ the youngest."

Rachel nods. "Yeah. Nico's all mature and stuff, and the rest of us are-"

Connor burps.

"- _immature_."

Travis shrugs for his brother. "That was a total 9. You can't attack him if it was a good burp."

"It _was_ pretty good," Nico continues for Travis. "Really deep, and loud. I think it echoed. A solid 8.6"

"8.9" Leo volunteers.

Rachel sighs. "I take it back. I take it _all_ back. We are all immature. Every single one of us."

"Yeah, yeah." Connor sits on his knees. He makes a grab for Nico's envelopes, who darts away. "Release the gifts!"

"Fine," Nico tosses an envelope to each person. Leo admires the neat script of his name. It looks familiar, kind of like-

"Persephone?" Leo blurts out the Photography teacher's name.

Nico turns red and looks down. His hair covers most of his face, except for his burning pink ears. "Yeah. She's my stepmother. She and my dad got married early in the spring."

Leo's head is mentally clicking things together. "So _that's_ why you're so good at Photography? Is that why there's so many plants at your house? Is _that_ why she's extra nice to you?"

"More or less." Nico frowns, looking at Leo. "She thinks I'm cute. It's terrible."

"But you are cute!" Connor calls from behind the shredded paper. His envelope is in tatters, and he's already shoving the contents away in his pocket. "And you are the _best_ at giving gifts."

Leo decides to ignore the anticipation, and wait until getting home to open gifts in the privacy of his room. It's hard to ignore the temptation.

Connor goes next, brandishing gifts around the group like he is actually St. Nick. He laughs a giant and goofy _HO HO HO!_

Leo receives a big box wrapped with _Happy Birthday!_ wrapping paper. It feels light, but there's definitely something rattling inside.

Travis follows next. His hand falls on Leo's thigh when he pushes himself to get up.

"For you," Travis winks at Nico and kisses his hand. "The sweetest princess in the kingdom."

Nico pulls back his hand and immediately starts taking out hand sanitizer. Nico's the type to have a little bottle clipped to his bag. It smells like pomegranates.

"And you, the noble knight," Travis dances his way to Rachel. He winks at her and kisses her cheek.

"Why, thank you." Rachel accepts her gift kindly.

Connor bats his eyes at Travis when he comes around. "What about me?" He holds out his hand, clearly waiting for a kiss on the hand.

"For you," Travis throws a pack of socks at his head. He blows a kiss. "The dumbass."

"Screw you!" Connor pretends to catch the kiss and break it in half.

Finally, Leo's the last one. Travis places a lovely wrapped red box at Leo's feet. He winks and sits back down next to Leo.

It's frustratingly anti-climatic, but Leo doesn't say anything. In fact, he's starting to wonder what Jason and Piper are doing. It's lunchtime, and Leo's sitting in a classroom to eat lunch. Normally the group sits outside on the roof, but it had gotten too cold. The teacher of the room didn't really mind, as long as everything is neat in time for her next class.

Rachel plops a box in Leo's lap. She beams at the boy. The box is beyond heavy, making Leo wonder how she could've carried such a thing until lunch.

Leo seals away the presents in his bag to keep his own curiosity at bay.

"You guys should've told me! I would've bought in something." He says instead. He feels really bad. He doesn't deserve all these nice things.

"It's no problem, Leo." Rachel smiles. "You're a cool person. You don't need to give to get sometimes."

Except Rachel's _wrong_. All Leo's life he's always given to get. He gives time to these guys and in return gets friends for a few months. He gets love from Jason and Piper because he gives them his pitifulness. He _has_ to give back someway.

"Okay," Leo nods. "Thank you then."

"Dude, chill out," Travis leans on Leo. "You don't have to do anything for us. Hey, Nico, did you get the movie tickets?"

Leo filters out the rest of the conversation. Travis claims Leo doesn't have to do anything for them. Except that's the thing. If he doesn't do anything, doesn't that make him useless? What's the use of someone who doesn't do anything for other people?

 _Yes_ , Leo decides. It makes him useless.

* * *

Leo meets up with Calypso after school. She had texted them to meet up in the park.

Leo finds her on the swingset. She sits in the middle one, leaving the left swing for Leo to sit on. To her right, is the space left in absence of the swing Leo broke so long ago.

"Happy holidays," Leo says. He swings slowly, leaning his head on one of the chains.

"Yeah," Calypso kicks at the snow under her feet. It had snowed last night and was going to be snowing all tonight. A perfect white Christmas. "What are you going to do during break?"

"I don't know," Leo says, kicking his feet in front of him, before pulling it back. "I think I'm going on a trip with Piper and Jason. Probably spend Christmas with them or something. When we come back, maybe I'll just stay at home."

Calypso rubs her hands on her thighs. "Piper and Jason, huh? Still following them?"

"What?" He tenses. "What do you mean, _following_ them? They're my friends."

Calypso turns away. "I don't mean anything. If you say they're your friends, then they're your friends."

"But you meant _something._ " Leo's seat jerks when he slams his feet down on the ground. He narrows his eyes at Calypso.

She doesn't answer.

The park is fairly empty due to the snow. Some of the walkways are clear except for salt, as the lamps light up the park even though it's early afternoon. There's a little group of hunched old ladies throwing bread into the pond for ducks that have already migrated south months earlier.

It's hopeless for them to still be throwing food, considering no one will eat it. Leo doesn't want to ask why they still do it though.

Maybe they're anti-recycling. People who purposely throw litter around to pollute the world. They could have their own little gang of grannies. A granny gang who will destroy the world breadcrumb by breadcrumb. A grang. A ganny. They would be evil villains with sharp needles and toxic butterscotch candies.

"Why are you laughing?"

"It's nothing," Leo turns away from the elder women and starts up his swinging again.

"I'm going away too," Calypso speaks again after a few beats of silence. "Back to Greece for a few weeks."

"What for?" Leo swings faster.

Calypso turns her seat so it faces Leo. "My mom still lives there. She's sick but I'm going to see her for a bit."

"And your dad? The Atlas guy?"

Calypso shrugs. "He's somewhere right now. Taking pictures or whatever."

"You think he can photograph me?" Leo makes a kissy face at Calypso. "I'll be his sexy Latino centerfold spread."

"You're so ugly sometimes."

"Say that when you see me in the next Playboy, _chica_." Leo jumps mid-swing. He flies through the air for a quick second. It's beyond words how amazing it is. Then he crashes into the ground and rolls on the floor. "Ow."

Calypso stands over him. She tucks a hair behind her ear. "See what I mean? Ugly."

"I prefer awesome." Leo groans as he sits up. Calypso sits next to him, brushing snow off of his hat and coat.

"You and I have very different definitions of awesome." Calypso titters. She wipes dirt from his face with her thumb. "There. All perfectly ugly and Leo, just how I like you, warts and all."

"Hey, I am _so_ not ugly." Leo rolls his eyes. "I've been told I'm very hot by the ladies."

"What ladies? You have no ladies in your life."

Leo sticks out his tongue. "Whatever. Still not ugly though."

Calypso frowns, tugging on her hair strand. "No, you're not. But you kind of are. Cringey I think is what I'm trying to say. If that's a word."

"I am _not_ cringey."

"You most definitely are," Calypso laughs. She leans forward and kisses Leo on the forehead. Huh. She stands up and walks over to her discarded school bag. She lifts it over her shoulder and drops a shoebox-sized gift in his lap. "You are absolutely cringey and cliche and ugly."

"Rude," Leo pulls on his hat and stands up. His forehead burns, the core of the heat from where Calypso's lips touched him. He waves the box at her. "What's this for?"

"Merry Christmas, Leo." Calypso shrugs. "I figured you might like something from a pretty girl."

Leo taps his lips. "You can kiss me right here to definitely cross off my wishlist."

It's weird. He definitely wouldn't mind if Calypso kissed him. He definitely wouldn't mind if she just grabbed him and ran her hands through his hair, and pulled on his clothes, and left lipstick smudges everywhere. At the same time, he would mind. Calypso isn't the one he would want to love unconditionally with all his heart. Calypso isn't the one he would want to spend cold nights cuddling with, or having dumb movie nights, or walks in the park.

He such a sap but it's true. He doesn't love Calypso like he does Jason. But there is a giant part of Leo that does like her _a lot_. He wishes he could love her. Things would be so much easier on him.

Calypso rolls her eyes but her smile is still on her face. "We'll see, Valdez."

Leo only grins back in response.

* * *

The gifts are lovely.

Nico gives him a gift card for the arcade. It gives him a shit ton of tokens to play with.

Connor gives him a box of music. CDs compiled of music that Leo can't wait to listen to later.

Rachel gives a generous gift of pencils, compasses, protractors, and rulers. It's really neat and Leo's ready to use them for his Festus model for Robotics.

Travis' gift is a bit confusing if not sweet. An awesome toolbox, and chocolates and cookies. It's the type of chocolate you get from a girlfriend (not that Leo would really know the feeling). The gift sends a warm wave through his body though.

Calypso gives him a lighter. It's red and gold. The flames flicker so prettily. Interestingly enough, she also gives him CDs. It's like everyone wants him to find better music.

* * *

Leo flips open his phone, to find a text from Drew. He only really has her number because the girl _is_ Piper's sister, and therefore the 3rd person Leo would contact if needing Piper.

(The first being himself because there is no possible way Leo _wouldn't_ know where Piper is. Although lately, he hasn't been around long enough to find out. The second person is obviously Jason.)

The contact name is DEVIL, which he really should change sooner or later.

 **DEVIL [19:24]:** We leave tomorrow.

 **DEVIL [19:24]:** Make sure to have your bags packed.

 **DEVIL [19:24]:** Nyssa did allow you to go.

 **DEVIL [19:24]:** See you at 10 AM

 **ME [19:25]:** wtf

 **ME [19:25]:** y r u txting me

 **ME [19:26]:** nt piper?

 **DEVIL [19:26]:** Fucking

 **DEVIL [19:26]:** Get a better phone or at least type better.

 **DEVIL [19:26]:** Seriously.

 **ME [19:27]:** f u

 **ME [19:28]:** how was the art show

 **DEVIL [19:29]:** Fine.

 **DEVIL [19:30]:** Why are you asking?

 **ME [19:33]:** for conrvesation

 **ME [19:33]:** conversation*

 **DEVIL [19:34]:** Why would you care?

 **ME [19:34]:** i don't

 **DEVIL [19:34]:** Fuck you Valdez.

 **ME [19:35]:** but its important to you

 **DEVIL [19:36]:** Oh.

 **ME [19:37]:** did u win

 **ME [19:37]:** do people win these things or

 **DEVIL [19:38]:** Sometimes

 **DEVIL [19:39]:** Art shows are more of a gallery, like this one.

 **DEVIL [19:39]:** Sometimes people buy pieces.

 **DEVIL [19:39]:** But that depends on the artist.

 **ME [19:41]:** did u sell

 **DEVIL [19:41]:** One piece. Oil on canvas.

 **DEVIL [19:41]:** A good couple hundred.

 **ME [19:42]:** holy shit woman

 **ME [19:43]:** what kind of mona lisa did u make

 **DEVIL [19:44]:** You've clearly never been to an art auction.

 **ME [19:45]:** how much to go

 **DEVIL [19:44]:** There's one in March.

 **DEVIL [19:45]:** I would invite you

 **DEVIL [19:46]:** But fuck that.

 **ME [19:48]:** i expected tht

 **ME [19:48]:** not like i want 2 go with u anyway

 **DEVIL [19:50]:** Whatever.

 **DEVIL [19:50}:** We're picking you up tomorrow.

 **ME [19:52]:** yh sure

 **ME [19:53]:** altho i do got2 ask

 **ME [19:53]:** who would u take to the auction

There's no response to that.

Leo's a bit surprised that he actually spent 20 minutes talking to Drew. He spent 20 minutes texting the Text Queen. He guesses she got tired of talking to him and probably went to talk to someone cooler and more interesting than Leo.

Quite literally anyone else in the world.

Leo wishes he could be like Drew. The girl has enough followers on Instagram to be considered a celebrity, but can still keep herself well managed and presentable in public. Even at home, when Leo's been around to see her 'ugly side' it's about as ugly as a designer bag is expensive.

(The Chanel bag stuffed away in the back of Piper's closet is worth more than Leo's entire existence. He's on level with the plastic bags given for 5 cents at the grocery market.)

The thing is, Drew has her shit together. Leo's a bit fortunate to know her the way he does. If Piper wasn't his best friend nor Drew's sister, Leo probably would've been bullied by Drew. Not that Drew bullies people (harshly that is), but Leo definitely wouldn't be worth her time.

Leo sighs, lying in bed. On the bedside, sat the NyQuil he's been using to go to sleep for the past few months. The sleeping medicine has always been a sort of staple in his life since he was eight, battling away nightmares and insomnia. But lately, he's been drinking heavily like an alcoholic.

It's not the least bit healthy, which Leo knows. He's fine though. Perfectly fine. He doesn't take any medicine tonight though. There's the feeling of dread and excitement tugging at his stomach that he doesn't quite want to go away. If anything, Leo would rather face this by himself and see where it takes him.

He doesn't want to go on the road trip with Piper and Jason and Drew and Piper's mom. There are a million things that could go wrong that Leo could list off the top of his head. What's he going to do? What's he going to say?

Everything's going to go so wrong. He'll make Piper and Jason hate him. They'll leave him for each other (like they already have) and will never talk to Leo again.

He'll be so alone.

So alone.

What will he do, when he's left with nothing? Left with no one?

His phone gives a final vibrate through the night. It's 1 AM according to his phone, which means he's skipped out on dinner, just lying and thinking.

It's Drew again.

 **DEVIL [1:05]:** ...

 **DEVIL [1:05]:** I can name one person

 **DEVIL [1:05]:** ...

 **DEVIL [1:05]:** Goodnight Leo.

* * *

The day starts off without a hitch.

He says his goodbyes to his family. Nyssa warns him to stay out of trouble, and Jake slides him extra money. Harley nearly pokes his eye out with an action figure.

"Have a good trip," Nyssa hugs Leo. "I think this would be good for you."

"A couple of days away from you? Hell yeah, it's good for me." Leo squeezes her tighter. She smells like motor oil and apples. Damn. Leo would miss out on the traditional holiday apple pie and buñuelos.

Jake pulls him aside as Jason and Nyssa help stacking Christmas presents in the trunk of the Jeep they were driving in.

"I talked to the old man, about what happened a few nights ago," Jake says. He only really calls their shared father _old man_ to annoy the guy. Not that said old man was around to hear it. "He says he's sorry."

Leo folds his arms. "Yeah, well he can shove it."

" _Leo,_ " Jake grabs Leo's arm before he can walk off. "The old man _does_ love you. He tries. Just give him a chance, okay?"

"Whatever." Leo pulls away. "I'll see you in a few days. I'll call when we get to the nearest motel or something. Knowing Piper's mom we might be driving all night though."

"Alright," Jake's face glows with mischief. "No drinking, you hear me? I know about that flask in the glove compartment."

"Aw," Leo whines. "And just as I was thinking you're the cool sibling. Guess Harley takes first place."

"Harley being the favorite is hardly even an insult. Everyone thinks that about us." Jake snickers.

Leo nods along, stepping towards the rest of the group waiting outside. "Just wait till he grows up and follows my trickster footsteps. Mayhem everywhere."

"Oh hell no," Jake snorts. "I've met Harley's friends a few times. They're all insane. Let's just hope he ends up like Nyssa."

There's a beat of silence before the two dissolve into laughter. Leo tries picturing his eager and spontaneous little brother like the more mature and responsible elder sister. "Like _that_ would ever happen."

"Yeah, yeah," Jake says dismissively. His head is turned away but he still has a few chuckles racking through his body. "Have fun though. Be careful."

"I will," Leo giggles. "See you. There better be some eggnog left over, or I _will_ hunt you down."

Jake closes the door with a wide grin on his face. "No promises."

Leo turns to the driveway, just as the car honks at him.

"Get in, Leo. We're wasting daylight!" Piper's mother, Aphrodite, honks at him happily. The nickname for the woman came from the beautiful goddess, which is clear as her perfectly straight teeth smile at Leo.

Leo's heart thunders as he shoves his way into the car. Drew sits next to her mother in the front, while Leo sits next to Piper and Jason. The couple is holding hands and listening to music through shared earbuds.

Leo swallows and turns to the window. Things were already great. He can do this.

He can do this.

* * *

 **a/n: hi, it's me again. when i first was publishing this fic, i posted once a month, but normally with 2 or 3 chapters. but now i'm wondering if that's too much to post weekly? a week feels like a really long time to me, but i'm realizing that chapters on wattpad are normally shorter than what i have? and because i'm crossposting to both wattpad and ffnet at the same time, i want them to be updated at the same pace.**

 **for now, i'm going to slow to only one chapter a week, unless you guys believe otherwise? i would hate to overflow you with too many words! :) anyway thanks for reading so far!**


	14. e (3)

**e**

The Jeep is eerily silent as it parks at the side of a gas station. Leo's entire body feels stiff but at the same time, as limp and flimsy as a cooked noodle. His neck hurts.

He had woken up on Jason's shoulder, with Piper still sleeping on Jason's chest. The weight of his best friend feels almost unbearably heavy, as if her body placed a weight on his soul, rather than just his torso. Jason's body is steady and warm, though, and it holds Leo up.

They had decided to stop at the gas station for food, and so the four teenagers are left to pick out snacks while Aphrodite buys lottery tickets. Leo thinks the lottery tickets are useless because of how unlikely it is for her to actually win, but the woman still hopes (and that's more than Leo can do at this point).

"Jesus, Leo," Piper snorts as she examines the food in his arms. "Whose family are you feeding?"

Leo sticks out his tongue in response, trying to ignore the uneasy feeling in his stomach. He doesn't _think_ he's buying a lot. Don't teenagers have high metabolisms? Aren't they supposed to eat too much? It isn't like he'd _actually_ feed an entire family, anyway - all he has are a sleeve of cookies, a few boxes of candy, and juice. So what if he had been wondering if the nachos were as good as they looked?

He puts down the juice and replaces it with water.

Drew eyes his from farther down the aisle. "You don't have to put it back, y'know. Eat what you want."

Leo finds that mildly hypocritical, especially considering Drew is only getting a water bottle and a pack of gum. Drew used to be a lot heavier (and looked just as amazing, making Leo wonder what changed), but now her diet might as well be a bunch of leaves on a stick. She probably hasn't had a cheeseburger since freshman year.

He gets the water.

They buy the food together, and Leo manages to steal shotgun before Drew notices him running for it. She glares at him, but he finds that he doesn't care as long as he's safe from the hormonal bodies of the teenage couple stationed in the backseat.

Aphrodite settles into the driver's seat, sunglasses propped on the bridge of her nose despite the cloudy weather. She looks confident - the type of natural confidence that most people would die to have. Piper and Drew both have it too.

"How's the heat back there?" She calls out.

None of the teenagers in the backseat answer, of course, as all of them are on their phones with headphones plugged in. Drew is doing who knows what but is flicking her finger steadily. Jason might be watching a movie, and the sight of Piper's fingers flying suggest that she's texting someone, but Leo wouldn't be able to guess who.

"Guess it's just me and you, huh?" Aphrodite tilts her face in Leo's general direction with a soft smile before focusing back on the road in front of her. "You can put something on if you want."

"Wha-?"

"The radio. You can play music if you want."

Leo fiddles with the radio for a while, eventually settling on a talk show. The hosts speak in soft and hushed tones to each other about traffic and the shitty weather and who knows what else. Neither of them is really paying much attention to the conversation the radio hosts have, but it helps to distract Leo from his thoughts and the time passing by.

Leo peels off his jacket and fingers his phone absentmindedly. Zero new messages, zero missed calls, zero new voicemails. His inbox is entirely empty, and the sight doesn't really bother him.

"How's school goin', love?" Aphrodite asks, eyes still trained on the road. "Drew and Piper don't talk to me much about it anymore, but I can't help but be curious."

Leo doesn't know what to say- to be honest, he really doesn't _know_ what school is like anymore. He just ends up daydreaming nonstop until the reality of a test grade slaps him in the face. He might focus for a few days after that, but inevitably he gets whisked away for another endless dream.

"All A's and B's, actually," he starts. "I have one C, but I'm trying to work on that." He's never going to get rid of that C in Photography, which he finds equally sad and hilarious. How is he barely passing an _art_ class?

"Good! I remember what it was like to go to CHB, myself. Does the last bell still ring ten minutes earlier than it's supposed to?"

"Of course."

Aphrodite lets out a light laugh. It sounds like concentrated joy and warmth. "Your father's actually the reason for that. He was always in a rush to leave, so he messed with the system. No one bothered with fixing it."

"Ha." Leo leans against the window, facing the woman in the driver's seat. "What was Dad like in high school?"

"Oh, he was always such a sweetheart. My best friend, actually."

Leo knew that his dad and Piper's mom were friends, but not _best_ friends. He's pretty sure the two are a bit closer than friends now, but that's not really any of Leo's business.

"Your father was shy. He didn't talk to too many people besides Ares and I-"

"You had a kid in your class. Named Ares."

Aphrodite giggles and pushes her sunglasses up so that they rest in her hair. Hazel eyes, similar to Piper's, twinkle brightly at Leo. Stars. Her eyes show beautiful constellations. "He wasn't always named Ares, just like how my real name isn't Aphrodite. Hell, even your father became Hephaestus. And it kind of just fit."

Leo looks over Aphrodite's form as a car passes by. "How?"

"Well, you see," Aphrodite turns the windshield wipers on as soft flurries of snow begin to fall. The sun has already fallen, and the moon shines its light from above the roof of the car. "Your father, Ares, and I were all best friends. Similar to you, Jason, and Piper, right?"

Leo doubts they were as close as JasonPiperLeo. That's impossible. The three of them practically came out of the womb together.

"It was right around the age you guys were. No- we were at Uni-"

"New Rome?"

"No, New Rome is a fairly new place. We were in dorms so it had to be college- no wait," Aphrodite's lip curls as she tries to clearly remember all that happened years before Leo was born. "That was definitely CHB. It definitely started in CHB."

Leo tries not to be too impatient. He still has water left. It's lukewarm.

"Okay, definitely CHB. Back when it was a boarding school. I think they changed it around the time your brother was born- issues with the school board, or something like that. Anyway, it was probably at some point around junior prom. Do you remember your junior prom? I remember Drew fussing over different types of blue dresses. Ours had an ancient Greece theme, which was a lot better than our Roman senior prom. Although I _am_ biased, as I was in charge of the decorating committee for that particular junior dance-"

Leo coughs. "Uh, what about you and my dad?"

Aphrodite sighs. "We were close. When we told everyone that the three of us were going to prom together, everyone thought that at the end of the night, me and your father would be sharing a hotel room, with Ares left forgotten. I'd admit, even I thought about it. Except your father just- he just never asked."

Even in her mid 40's, Aphrodite is stunning. He could only imagine what she looked like at his age. But if it's anything like Piper and Drew, his dad's a moron.

To be fair though, Leo wouldn't date either Piper or Drew.

"So what happened?"

"That night? I won prom queen- don't even remember who the king was, we weren't of the same social circles- and danced with Ares. At the end of the dance, he got on one knee and asked me out. He had terrified freshmen bring in roses and another crown." Aphrodite giggles. "He always does things to the extreme."

The uncomfortable feeling in his stomach returns, stronger than ever. A wave of déjà vu floods over him. Shit.

"Then me and Ares started dating. We lasted pretty long too; he even asked me to marry him when we were 25. But shortly after we got together, your father stopped hanging out with us." Aphrodite's nostalgic tone turns somber quickly. "He quit all his clubs, he started skipping school- a feat for a boarding school, y'know. Nobody really said anything - I suppose they thought it wasn't that big of a deal, considering it was the end of the year.

"Senior year came, and he was very skinny. I'm surprised he wasn't hospitalized for it, although eating disorders weren't too, uh, big when it came to men back then." Aphrodite's fingers drum on the steering wheel in a fast tempo. Her eyes dart across the road. "I was terrified for him. I made Ares talk to him. To this day, I still don't know what happened, but the next day they came to class with bruises up and down their bodies and arms wrapped around each other. After that, he started getting healthier, acting more like himself."

Leo lets out a breath. Even if his dad is currently a neglectful jerk, Leo is happy for him.

Aphrodite's not done. "We graduated and went to the same college. I majored in illustration, and your father in some kind of genius type of math or science. Your father was- is- too brilliant for any of us. Ares didn't know what he wanted to do until after he graduated from college, so he majored in history. A bit odd but he loved war."

"What happened in college?" Leo's back to waiting for her to continue sharing the story.

"There was a huge argument. It was kind of ridiculous, in hindsight- we were fighting over a bet or something. Something small. That was the first time your father slapped me and the first time I punched him." Aphrodite chews on her bottom lip. "Someone called the cops and he was put in holding until Ares got him out. Everything was good for a few weeks until your father tried to kill himself."

" _Obviously_ it didn't happen; you're evidence of that." She laughs weakly. "Someone found him as he was about to drown himself in the middle of a snowstorm. They took him to the emergency room, and he ended up being admitted. It did him a lot of good- he gained quite a few friends who could understand what he was going through." Aphrodite's voice cracks. " I- I couldn't understand what he was going through. So he left. Quit school, and started traveling. I'm surprised he came back to town when he was so free."

Leo's so surprised he doesn't know what to say. He folds his hands in his lap. "Shit, man."

Aphrodite glares, but it's half-hearted at best. She looks a lot more tired and weighed down than earlier. Like the events had only happened yesterday and she's still in shock. Her mascara is running a bit at the ends, but Leo doesn't comment on it.

Then a thought hits Leo. He gapes, staring at his best friend's mother. "You don't- you don't blame yourself for all of this?"

Aphrodite lets out another weak laugh. "Honey, your father has always been a secretive man. Back then... he just didn't fit with the standards that were placed on men. He wasn't the strong and rough player that Ares was. Your father was different. He was kind, smart, and soft. And people... didn't like that. I just wish he talked to me more. I might've _understood_ or _helped out_ more with his issues."

"Jesus."

"Yeah." Aphrodite pulls the car into a parking lot. They're at a motel with a neon vacancy sign. "If me and him weren't practically born together, he might've had it a lot worse. I was popular and happy enough for it to rub onto him. Wherever I went, he followed. But I don't know- maybe he just didn't want to follow anymore."

Leo undoes his seatbelt when Aphrodite finishes parking. He looks behind at the back seat to find Drew and Jason sleeping. Piper is listening to music with her head on Jason's shoulder. She doesn't look that interested in what Leo and Aphrodite were talking about. Good.

"What's with the nicknames?" Leo stops Aphrodite from getting out the car.

"Oh, those? Ha, it's really silly," Aphrodite tilts her head at Leo, "in Greek mythology, Hephaestus and Aphrodite were married, but she often cheated on him with Ares. I don't think other people realized that me and your father were never dating, but the names stuck after junior prom."

Leo starts picking up the trash now. He takes time to stuff his wrappers through the tiny hole of his bottle. It's oddly fulfilling. "But you and my dad- you guys are close now, right? Real close."

"That's what you think is going on?" Aphrodite dissolves into breathless and mirthless laughter. It sounds fake and thick with tears. She starts coughing. "Your father's a reserved man. He's never said I love you to me. I think he's only loved one person in his life, and that person isn't me. For the life of me, honey, we're just friends."

When Aphrodite looks up, he can the stars in her eyes crumbling into cosmic dust.

* * *

The motel room has a bathroom and a half kitchen. There's a coffee machine, a fridge, a microwave, and an electric stove top. There's a giant window, facing the nearest city, with huge green curtains. An ugly looking brown couch sits to the side opposite a boxy looking television set.

There are only two beds.

"Mine," Aphrodite kicks off her shoes, and falls onto one bed, with her arms and legs splayed out. She groans in happiness and Leo can tell she won't be moving any time soon. She lets out a few snores, making Leo laugh so hard he chokes.

There's only one bed left now.

"Me and Piper can share a bed-"

"Shut the hell up, Jason." Leo intervenes with a snort and maybe a lurch in his stomach. "I don't want to be Uncle Leo just yet."

Jason's effectively quiet with a burning red face.

Drew messes with the couch. It pulls out to a bed that could fit maybe two people. "Someone could sleep here."

" _You_ could sleep there," Piper points out.

" _You_ can go die," Drew presses her lips firmly.

Leo considers himself very lucky that Jake is a very chill person, and Harley isn't angry enough to make remarks like these.

"Me and Leo can sleep together," Piper yawns. "Then Drew and Jason. Nothing bad could happen from that."

Jason takes a look at Drew, who is sizing him up. When she smirks, he blurts, "Or it can be girls with girls, and boys with boys."

Impending dread (or maybe bile) fills Leo up until it wants to come out of him. He claps Jason on the back. "Listen, man, consider yourself lucky to sleep next to a babe. Every heard of the porno fantasy, My Girlfriend's Hot Sister?"

"Leo." Jason sits on the pull out bed. He grabs Leo's arm and yanks so the boy comes tumbling down on the squeaky mattress. "Just sleep here with me."

Piper sits on her own shared bed with Drew. "Jeez Jason, if you weren't dating me, I would think you and Leo have something going on. Should I get jealous?"

 _Yes, maybe you should. Get so fucking jealous, it'll rot you slowly from the inside like it's doing to me._ Leo doesn't say anything but winks at Piper.

"Of course not, babe," Jason says. "Pass some sheets though?"

Drew disappears into the attached bathroom. As another snore slips away from Aphrodite, Leo tries his best to ignore his friend's shuffling and pillow fluffing. He shifts through his bags to separate all his items.

Leo had spent all of yesterday wandering through stores to find Christmas presents for everyone, even though none of them were particularly religious. The trip should've taken only a quick hour or two, but ended up taking the entire day.

Some earrings for Piper because she's got 3 piercings on each ear. Charcoal pencils for Drew because she likes art, and they were on sale. A watch he found and fixed up for Jason since he seems to like collecting them (and Leo would never be able to admit to anyone else that fixing the stupid thing took most of his time, because he _needs_ to take his time- he _needs_ to dedicate his time to Jason, because it's just always been that way for him.). He managed to find some nice sugar scrubs for Aphrodite, but Leo hadn't been entirely sure what to get her- and what _do_ you get for your best friend's mom, and your mom figure from the past 9 years?

The presents were stacked carefully on the kitchen counter. Tomorrow will be Christmas Eve, and Leo's not as excited as he normally would be. If anything, he's just tired.

"Bathroom's free," Drew grumbles. Leo darts to the room with his toothbrush. He sits on the toilet cover and folds his legs up.

He doesn't come out until an hour later when he's absolutely sure that everyone is sleeping. Then he slides in, keeping sure to leave as much space as possible between Jason and himself. There's enough space for an elephant to crawl in and roll around.

Jason's not as asleep as the other girls. "Night, Leo."

Leo stares up at the ceiling. He can hear the pounding sound of his heartbeat over Aphrodite's calm snoring. It might pop out, and he'll die, but that'll be okay.

"Goodnight."

* * *

It's awfully inconvenient, but Leo is now forced to go out running every morning, no matter where he is. To build stamina or his muscles or something else that he can't be bothered to remember. Leo thought that being on the sports team itself would be enough exercise, but _apparently_ , he has to torture himself at home too.

If anything, the cross country team might be the most normal and boring club ever. They're not insanely smart like the Robotics club (whose club picture Leo ended up being in for the yearbook), nor are they insanely creative like the two-(wo)manned Art Club. Hell, they're not even as popular or well-liked as any of the other sports teams going on at CHB.

(The current favorite sport is basketball, something Leo has no interest in. Jason plays as ... power... forward? Whatever, it still sounds stupid.)

(This season, of course, Leo has spent exactly $27 at basketball games for the exciting experience of sitting in the corner of the bleachers and watching jerseys stick to sweaty and musky bodies. Calypso joined him once and fell asleep.)

"Yikes," Leo mumbles when he looks at his phone. It's only 6:41 in the morning, and he's already sweaty and exercising. What has he become? Nyssa would be proud if she were to see him like this.

He's at the door, fumbling with the keys when it opens preemptively. It's Drew in pink Adidas. Her headphones are plugged, with cheerful pop loud enough to travel to Leo's ears.

"You _smell_ ," Drew's nose crinkles.

"I wonder why." Leo rolls his eyes and closes the door behind him. He wonders only briefly how often she runs until the thought forces its way out into the trash can because quite frankly, he doesn't care. _Although_ , it might be nice to have a running partner.

No one else is awake, so Leo takes full advantage of the empty bathroom. Leo adjusts the water pressure from its previously massaging one to something more powerful. He leans his head against the shower tile as cold water pounds into his back. He feels like he's getting stoned (not the good kind) for all his wrongdoings.

When he exits the bathroom in the midst of toweling his hair, Piper is up and sloppily munching on a granola bar while hunched over the kitchen counter. The cup of coffee brewing smells sickly delicious.

Piper stares at him through crusty eyes. Her pajamas are only a t-shirt with a red stain and flannel pants. Leo thinks she's beautiful.

"Hey."

"Hey." Piper rubs her eyes. She scrolls through her phone, narrowing her eyes at something on the screen. "There's a thrift shop somewhere nearby. Wanna check it out?"

No. "Sure."

"Alright," Piper hums. "Then there's also this arcade not too far from there, cause I know how much you love them. I'm gonna kick your ass in air hockey."

"Make it skeeball and you're on."

"Either way, I'm not the one who's going to be crying."

"Sure, McLean. Just watch- they're gonna put my name in the Hall of Fame. ' _Most badass player eva._ '"

Piper rolls her eyes and throws her wrapper away. "As if."

There's a thud and a groan. Jason Grace has officially been woken up as he stares up at the ceiling. Leo walks over to stand above him, feeling like a god talking to a puny mortal. It's like David and Goliath but with more homoerotic feelings than allowed in the Bible.

"Good morning," Jason mumbles, groggily rubbing his side. He uses his elbows to prop himself up and sleepily smiles at Leo.

"Hi," Leo says curtly because he fears what might come out of his mouth with the revelation that Jason Grace and his tousled bedhead and revolting morning breath makes Leo want to tackle him and smile and cry and make breakfast and scream and lay down and hold hands and yell into another astral plane.

Yeah.

* * *

"What're you looking at?" Piper looks behind her shoulder at Leo, who was trailing a bit further back than normal.

Leo slides away his lighter, palming it in his hand. "Nothing."

"It was definitely something." Piper actually stops in the middle of the sidewalk to have the conversation. She pulls on her arm, and because they're holding hands, Jason feels the jerk and stops.

Piper steps closer, "Lemme _see_ , dude." She grabs his arm, and Leo shakes her off.

Jason just observes, and it pisses Leo off. Why is he just standing there?

"It's just a wrapper," Leo dismisses her and strides on. He tucks his chin into his jacket and brushes her off. It's not a JasonPiperLeo secret, it's a _Leo_ secret. It's his lighter, it was a gift to _him_.

Leo regrets pushing past her though, because for a second when he looks back, Piper looks like she's in pain.

But then Jason whispers something to her, and her face lights up and she giggles.

And Leo doesn't regret it all too much.

* * *

 **ME [12:07]:** do u ever think abt people

 **CALYPSO [12:08]:** All the time, Leo.

 **ME [12:08]:** calypso u think lots right

 **ME [12:08]:** abt the world n stuff

 **CALYPSO [12:09]:** Sort of.

 **ME [12:09]:** wht abt it

 **ME [12:10]:** nvm

 **ME [12:11]:** do u mean what u said earlier

 **ME [12:11]:** in the park abt me

 **CALYPSO [12:14]:** What?

 **ME [12:14]:** nvm

 **CALYPSO [12:15]:** No.

 **CALYPSO [12:15]:** Don't get all insecure on me

 **CALYPSO [12:15]:** You care too much about what people think, Leo

 **CALYPSO [12:16]:** But in any case, you are definitely not ugly nor terrible

 **CALYPSO [12:16]:** Got it, buddy?

 **ME [12:16]:** yh ok

 **ME [12:16]:** merry xmas

 **ME [12:16]:** eve

 **CALYPSO [12:18]:** Yeah. Merry Christmas (Eve)

* * *

It's actually pretty fun. Trying on clothes with his best friends. It's really silly and enjoyable and Leo misses it for some reason. It feels a bit more nostalgic than it should.

He has a translucent neon green raincoat with a frog hood on. Leo winks at Jason, who sits at the side of the mirror at the end of the hall. There are only two dressing rooms, Leo's and Piper's.

"Cute?" Jason shrugs, sticking his hands into his sweatpants pockets. He's not very good at critiquing clothing, but he seems to be getting very good at slouching.

Piper sticks her head out, with her shoulders bare and hair tousled. "It's definitely cute."

Leo flies back into his room to try something else on because there's nothing more demeaning than being called cute. (Even if his face felt a little hot when Jason said it.)

There's a pair of small overalls.

"You look four," Jason assesses.

"I second that." Piper head sticks out and back in.

Leo wants to buy the overalls anyway. The pocket has a little hammer decoration that he likes and it's really comfortable.

He sits with Jason as they wait for Piper.

"Damn," Jason curses under his breath and tilts his phone at Leo. He's lost at some level of Candy Crush that Leo didn't even know existed. "Wanna try?"

Leo swipes at the screen. "You getting anything?"

"Nah," Jason says, looking over Leo's shoulder to see what he was doing. "Well, actually there was this watch that looked cool."

"Oh okay."

Piper steps out with a funky bomber jacket with a lot of patches of bands Leo's never heard of, but Piper claims to know each and every one of them. He thinks she's lying because she totally is, but Piper won't admit it.

"You know a band... called _The Unfluffed Pillows_? What was their hit song, _Go To Sleep_?"

"Ha ha, I hate you."

"- And there's the _Black Nailpolish_? Ha, was their song _Every Cuticle Untouched_?"

"Leo, shut up."

Leo stops laughing or at least tries to control it a bit more. "Heh, but seriously the jacket looks pretty good- wait, is that a Girl Scouts patch?"

Piper closes the door.

Jason grabs his phone and starts a new game. "What's a five letter word for someone who drags people around and then takes forever?"

"...Piper?"

"Bingo."

* * *

They go and see a movie. It's really dumb and cheesy, and it's for kids. Literally- the rest of the audience are six-year-olds and grumpy parents dragged along for the ride.

Leo loves the movie though.

"- And there was this vampire who's best friend was this human I guess-"

"Uh huh."

"-But then there was also this robot who was really cool! Like it was so badass, but it would be really cool to make, y'know?-"

"Uh huh."

"-I mean, like, the robot's name was XF5 but everyone just called her 5 which is sick! So anyway she was really advanced and stuff. She had like, an entire library of knowledge, and recorded everything, and has lasers-"

"Uh _huh_."

"-Right, so like I was saying, the vampire was this really awkward and shy guy who had braces so imagine how that- "

"Leo." There's a warm hand on his shoulder. It's Piper. "I don't think Drew is actually listening."

"No, no, I am," Drew says in a tone that clearly means she's not listening nor was she ever listening. She's double tapping on her phone and scrolling and then double tapping again. A few shopping bags sit next to her on the bed.

"I don't remember the guy having braces." Jason flickers through channels.

"It's 'cause you were too busy making out."

"I was not."

"You were. Loudly. Plus you drank all my soda, you greedy asshole." Leo remembers this moment clearly. He watched when Jason removed the straw from his lips to put it in the cup holder dividing them. A single bead of Sprite-mix (or maybe it was saliva?) had glistened at the tip.

Leo remembers being a bit grossed out. He also remembers licking his lips. Gross. Ish. (Gross to a point, he settles.)

"Sorry."

"You're not."

"I'm not. You happen to mix sodas just right."

Piper interrupts, by collapsing on the couch next to Jason. His arm hooks around her neck almost immediately.

"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is on." Piper croons. She pats the empty space for Leo to sit next to her. "C'mere Valdez."

When he falls into the couch, Leo hugs Piper because he misses her, and tries to play it off as a trip. He breathes in her soft smell of fabric softener and floral soap. It's comforting, and Piper smiles at him weirdly but puts her arm around his shoulders too.

"Now I got my boys together for the holidays," She grins. "Life is great, ain't it?"

"All you need is a plastic bag to cover your face." Drew so helpfully supplies. "Then it'll be a real Christmas."

"Get drunk and pass out. For a few weeks."

"I would but our _mother_ wants to take a millennium getting eggnog."

Piper makes a face at Drew, who childishly returns the favor. Leo buries himself in the warmth coming off Piper and the scratchy wool of her lavender sweater.

On the tv, Rudolph's nose blinks brightly.

* * *

"Hey Leo," Leo had assumed Jason Grace was asleep. According to Leo's phone, it's exactly 11:57 PM. After Aphrodite had come in with pizza, cookies, and eggnog, the teenagers ate as much as they could until they passed out in a food coma. Except for Leo, and evidently Jason.

"Yeah?"

"Can we talk?"

"We are."

Rustling. Sheets moving. Bed creaking. Leo rolls over to find Jason staring at him. It's been a while since Leo's seen him without his glasses. Jason looks like a kid, a confused and shy _kid_. There's this pimple on Jason's chin that's very dorky and cute. Not like Leo's gross ones, but very small and red. He could kiss it and maybe the pain would go away.

Leo makes a mental note to stop being so disgusting sometimes.

"We don't talk about feelings, right?" Jason says.

"We don't. I mean, we _can_ , but I don't know."

"God," Jason laughs softly. "It's just- my sister, she was supposed to come home for the holiday, right? Planned for it and everything."

Jason's sister is in the military. Her name is Thalia, and she's really cool. A lot more laid-back and independent from what Leo remembers. Unlike Jason, she just doesn't really care what other people think about her.

"But then she calls, right? Middle of the night on like a Tuesday, maybe a week ago. Says she can't make it. Which isn't too bad, because I _get_ that."

"Yeah."

"But then my father-" Jason rubs his eyes and makes the most quiet-frustrated noise Leo's ever heard. "-She must've not told him because he comes in yesterday morning and is all like, _Where's your sister?_ And he was super fucking happy and ready for her. He was wearing this tie I've never even _seen_ before and this nice shirt and it was just such a-"

"-Kodak moment?"

" _Yeah._ And when I tell him that Thals isn't going to make it, he just has this _look_." Jason rolls onto his back again. "He was so disappointed that he wasn't going to see her. The same man who's forgotten my _birthday_ a few times finally shows enthusiasm for one of his children- and it's not even the child who's actually there!"

For a moment, Leo nearly reaches out to touch Jason. To hold, maybe, to show some type of connection just to let Jason know that Leo's there for him.

"Fuck him." Leo offers instead, his hands kept to himself.

"Yeah," Jason whispers with this type of laugh that makes Leo hold his breath. "Fuck him."

Leo checks his phone again. It's officially Christmas and has been for four minutes now.

"Hey, man." Jason faces Leo now. "How are you and your siblings?"

"Uh, good," Leo says. "Jake found a hundred dollars the other day. Someone dropped it, and he couldn't figure out who. Er, I think Nyssa started to reconnect with some old friends of hers? Do you remember Clarisse?"

"Was she the one who chased us with your sister when we were listening in on their conversation?" Jason snorts. "We were like, 10 or 11 with two 15-year-olds chasing us around your house."

"Yeah," Leo reminisces. He sort of remembers being young. He sort of doesn't. If anything, some of his memories might not even be real, just emotion infused dreams that he recalls. He does remember that particular event, however. It was around the time when Jason and Leo first started hanging out.

"Have you-" Jason says more quietly. "Is that it?"

Leo covers his head with the blanket. "Yeah. That's all. Good night, Jason."

"Leo," Jason pulls on the sheet. Sharing beds is the worst. "Come on. I know you're hiding something."

"Go to bed."

"Leo."

"I'm tired. Look, you hear my yawn? It's cause I'm tired."

Jason shifts closer, his arms wrapping around Leo loosely. "Remember my 13th birthday?"

Leo peeks through a tiny hole in the sheet. "Yeah. We all went skinny dipping, which was _stupid_ because Piper got a leech on her leg. Her mom yelled at us and then drove us to get an ice cream cake for you. Then we all slept over at my house, because you and Pipes thought Harley was the cutest three year old to walk the earth."

"Yep," laughs Jason. "Do you remember why I was knocking on your door, before all that happened?"

Leo's quiet for a moment. He sits up, blanket falling off of him and the pull out bed creaking. "You were crying. You and Thalia were fighting. And your dad forgot your birthday."

" _Yeah_. And do you remember what you did when I told you?" Jason sits up too. It's really dark, with the only light coming from outside, as there's the light on the sidewalk and the occasional car passing by.

"I punched you for crying like a baby and wiping snot on my shirt. Nasty." Leo closes his eyes. "And then I told you that you could tell me anything no matter what."

"And what makes you think," Jason says carefully and slowly. "That you can't do the same with me?"

At that moment, Leo feels very warm. Jason's arms pull around Leo's body, hugging him tightly. Leo breathes out harshly and rubs his eyes. They stay like that for what seems forever, with Leo breathing in the being that is Jason Grace and friendship and love.

"It's snowing." Jason mumbles.

"Yeah."

Leo buries his face into Jason's chest. "God. My dad? I saw him the other day with Harley. He was making a sandwich in the middle of the night. Claimed the fridge in the basement didn't have any food."

"Shit. I didn't know you saw him."

"Mhm. He didn't even _say_ anything- Actually he did, but it was- it was like, _You've both grown_. And then he fucking _leaves_. That's it. That's all he does."

Jason considers his words carefully. He pulls them down in a heap of limbs and sheets. It's getting cold, so Jason's quick to cover their bodies back up again.

Not that Leo could really feel the temperature at this point.

"Wow. Fuck _him_."

Leo laughs, bitterly and cynically. It's as empty as it sounds."Yeah. _Fuck_ him."

Quiet again. The snoring of the other people in the room. Leo's phone says 1:32.

"Merry Christmas, Jason Grace." He mumbles into Jason's ear.

It's too late because he's already sleeping. Leo sighs, turning to press his back into Jason's chest. He might as well enjoy the embrace for a few hours.

"Merry Christmas, Leo Valdez," Leo whispers to himself. He might as well because no one else will say it back to him.

The sound echoes around the room and back to Leo's ears. There's no response.

He feels a biting cold in the pit of his stomach. The pain is only second on Leo's mind. The first thing is the feeling of contentment.

He's okay.


	15. l (3)

**l**

Because he's under the legal drinking age, Leo gets a fluorescent yellow wristband. Both Piper and Jason get one too, but Leo's is a lot bigger on his skinny wrist. It nearly slides off if he twists his wrist just right, and Leo mentally debates if he should slide it off and get drunk off his ass.

He doesn't.

"We're _actually_ going to see Hestia," Piper grins, with her hands stuffed in her pockets. She puts her puffy winter coat away on the back of the chair in front of her but is now wearing a thin Japanese floral designed jacket. "I'm so excited."

"It'll be cool," Jason agrees. He looks incredible with his blue polo shirt and tight jeans. The dim lights make both Piper and Jason look even more alluring.

"I'm gonna get some Coke or something." Leo's not as excited as the other two. He heads towards the back of the room.

The place they were in was a small hole in the wall club that wasn't very known. The room had been rearranged so that in the front there was a small raised stage with band members setting up instruments. The rest of the room held round tables with fake tiny candles and chairs clustered around. Most of the people weren't actually sitting down unless they were eating or placing their drinks down.

In the back was a small bar of the sort, with chairs lined up against the counter. The bathroom was to the side, with a small line for the women's.

When Leo comes back to the table, Jason and Piper are gone. He panics- because of course, it's him who gets lost in a strange environment with strange people.

He finds them along the wall, talking in hushed tones.

"Where'd you guys go? I thought I lost you," Leo acts like his heart wasn't pounding, the blood hadn't rushed to his head, and his stomach hadn't dropped.

"Just scouting good spots," Jason replies.

Piper sips from the black straw of Leo's drink. "Is this the cherry kind?"

"Yeah," Leo takes back his drink. "So we're just going to stand here until the show is over?"

"Most likely," Piper says. "I've never been to one of these. It might be over in 2 or three hours."

Leo's watch tells him in 3 hours it will be midnight. "Er, I don't think your mom would like us getting back so late."

"She took Drew to some spa." Piper rolls her eyes. Is she wearing makeup? It's some kind of glitter on her eyelids and cheekbones. Piper's actually really pretty. "They won't even notice we're gone."

"Oh," Leo looks away. He grins widely. "Let's have fun, then!"

* * *

He's not having fun. After Hestia came out (and the lights dimmed even more) the music started to play. At first, it was great- _really_ great, actually. Then Leo just didn't care anymore.

Another band goes up after Hestia takes a break. They're called the Muses. If possible, this might be the most indie-pop thing Leo's ever experienced since Coachella. (Not that Leo's ever been to Coachella, nor seen any of its lineups. But he does know what type of people are seen there.)

"I'm gonna get something to drink," Leo tells his friends, not that they're listening. The two are swaying along to the music, in that gross couple pose. Piper's standing in front of Jason, whose arms are around her shoulders. Piper's whispering something to Jason, who laughs.

"Yeah, okay, Leo!" Piper breaks out of her spell to smile and nod at Leo.

Leo rolls his eyes.

He tugs on his wristband, ordering some chips and very spicy salsa. Checking his phone, there's only a message from Rachel, wishing him a Happy Holidays. She was the only one (out of Nico, the Stolls and her) not to text him yesterday when it was actually Christmas. In her message, it says something about a jet and no connection. Not Leo's problem.

It's a bit interesting though. Last year, Leo only received messages from Jason, Piper and from his older siblings. Although his inbox will never be particularly busy, it's definitely a bit more full than normal.

Hestia goes back on stage again. Most of the occupants of the room are singing along softly to the words. Leo only knows about one of her songs. It's called Altar and it's about her ex-boyfriend who left her and she's so depressed that she becomes a _nun_. Or something like that. The meanings of songs are hard to understand nowadays.

"Are you okay?"

Leo looks up. There's a curly haired guy sitting next to Leo staring at him weirdly. He's kind of cute- no, _really_ cute. Definitely on level with Calypso and Jason and Piper and Drew. Holy _crap_ does Leo know a lot of hot people.

"Yeah, why?"

"Your hand is sitting in salsa. Has been for a few minutes."

Leo stares at his hand that is indeed, covered in salsa. He doesn't remember putting his hand there. Huh.

"I heard it's a great exfoliator." Leo winces.

"Woah, dripping it now. Definitely dripping it." The stranger hurries to clean Leo's hand with his own napkin. "Although I might disagree, guac does the skin wonders."

"Uh, thanks," Leo mutters, frowning down at his hand. "Leo."

"Lester. Don't call me that though, it's Apollo." Apollo winks at Leo.

Leo snorts. That's a dumb name. "What is that- your stage name?"

"Trust me," Apollo's nose crinkles, "If you had my entire name for your entire life, you would want to change it too."

"Sorry to hear." Leo wipes the last of the salsa. "I'm just stuck with a plain Leo. I've got a brother named Harley, middle name Davidson, though."

"That's terrible." Apollo sips his own drink. It looks like eggnog, but Apollo's straw is red for alcohol. "My parents decided to name their twins Lester and Leslie. That was a mistake."

"Holy _shit_. Tell me she changed her name to Artemis."

"Of course. She's the bassist for Hestia actually." Apollo gestures to the stage. Leo turns around, to eye the pretty bassist swaying along. Her silver parka shines under dark lights, and her hair is neatly fishtailed. If anything, Artemis looks a bit younger than Leo- who might be the youngest person here.

"Oh. That's cool, I guess."

"Mhm," Apollo really likes his eggnog apparently. He leans over the counter and asks for another one.

Leo's a bit curious to see where this will go.

* * *

"Wait, wait, wait." Apollo laughs loudly. "If you don't even like the music, why are you _here_?"

"I don't know," Leo scans the room for his friends, finally finding them in the same corner. "I was here with my friends but, like, I don't know anymore."

Apollo follows his eyes. "Those two are your friends? Haircut and Glasses?"

Leo chokes. "Yeah, that's them."

"They seem cool. Maybe not if they left you here." Apollo turns to Leo. "Unless maybe you interrupted them? Are you sure you're not just tagging along to a date?"

No, Leo feels very much like he might've been tagging along to a date. He watches Piper and Jason dancing and singing together. It sucks and makes Leo dizzy, so he turns away.

"No, I'm pretty sure I was invited." Leo rolls his eyes. "But whatever."

"Kay," Apollo starts bobbing his head. He might have drunk too much eggnog. Leo really should've watched how much he was drinking. "I really like this song."

"Yeah, it's okay. Nice rhythm."

"Aw come on," Apollo's hand touches Leo's thigh. "It's really great! Sometimes I can't stand my sister, but this is- this is great."

"It's nice but I don't _love_ it." Leo shrugs."Why do you like it?"

"It pulls me in, man. Music attracts certain people," Apollo explains with a flourish of a hand. "Rock attracts the rebels, and country attracts the southerners. And Hestia? The _gays_."

Leo so surprised that he laughs. Wow, _okay_. Apollo stares at him curiously, as if to size him up.

Apollo tucks a loose strand of hair behind his ear. "Are you- You can't possibly be straight."

Leo averts his eyes and chews on his straw. He can pinpoint Jason's low and deep voice singing along to the song, even from the back of the room. God _._

"Oh." Apollo sounds disappointed. He grabs Leo's hand. It's scarily warm. "Come on, you can't even see from here. Want a better seat?"

"I don't even like the music." Leo allows himself to be pulled along anyway.

Apollo pulls him through the crowd and towards the stage. As he's being pulled, Leo briefly catches the eyes of Jason and Piper. He hopes they worry about him. He hopes they get jealous.

Leo's now by the side of the stage, moving towards the back. While the music is definitely louder, the view wasn't much better. "Where are we going?"

"I don't know," he admits. "I didn't think you would actually come."

"You _do_ have a strong grip."

"Oh, sorry 'bout that." Apollo lets go. "I can tell you're still not interested. Wanna leave this place or something?"

"I don't know about that…" Leaving with a hot stranger into the night might be the stuff of romance books, but that isn't Leo's lifestyle. Granted, he ran away with Calypso plenty of times before actually knowing her (though does he really know her?), but this felt different. More risque and secretive.

"Come on," Apollo whines. "I've got a pass to the arcade a block away. Free hot wings after 11..."

Holy shit.

* * *

"Y'know, I thought you were cool, but really you're a bigger dork than me," Leo says halfway into a hot wing.

"Am not," Apollo scoffs. He shifts in his seat, "Unless you don't mind it, then yes, maybe I am."

"Of course not." Leo playfully punches him. "I have never met anyone who could beat me at guitar hero or Pac-man. You've got some serious _skills_."

"What can I say? I'm good with my hands, Leoster." Apollo leers and leans in. He smells like Axe and greasy pizza.

"Oh god," Leo laughs, pushing away. " _Leoster_?"

"It's cool. You're cool."

"Coming from someone who changed their name from _Lester_."

"But now you're the Leoster, that's cool, right?"

Leo's about to retort when his phone rings. He answers it, not glancing at the screen.

"Leo, where the hell are you?" It's Piper.

"Uhm." Leo fingers his wristband. "In the bathroom?"

"Try again."

"In the motel room?"

" _Leonid_ -"

"Okay!" Leo screeches. He hates when people say his full name. Apollo looks concerned and starts clearing away the trash. "I'm with this, uh, person. That I met. They're pretty cool."

"You left us for someone you just met?!" Leo pulls the phone from his ear. "What is wrong with you!"

"Dude, chill out, I didn't think you would notice I was gone."

"Of course I'd notice if you're gone!" Piper is freaking out. "You're my best friend! Do you know how worried I was when the show ended and you weren't in sight? Jason's outside asking for you right now!"

"Did you… did you tell him you found me?" He winces at the frustrated yell that pierces through his eardrum. "Okay, okay sorry. I'm at the arcade a block down- y'know, the one we passed by on the way to the show?"

"Leo Valdez, you better be in one piece and safe and sound, you hear me? Don't go walking off with strangers at night!" Piper would have a heart attack if Leo were to ever tell her about Calypso. Which he won't. Obviously.

"Yeah okay, I got it."

"We'll be right there." And with that, Piper hangs up.

"Sorry, you had to hear that," Leo scratches the back of his head. "She's like my sister and she worries a lot."

"No, I get it," Apollo says, leading Leo to the door. "Listen, I really did have fun. Lemme see your phone real quick."

Apollo only taps at his phone for a few quick seconds before handing it back to Leo. He checks his phone- he has a new contact, where the messages come in the color yellow, and the contact name is a simple 3.

"It's my number," Apollo says sheepishly. It reminds Leo of a nerdy freshman trying to ask out the popular girl. "If you wanna just hang or uh-"

"I'd like that." Leo beams. He feels like he's on fire because Apollo makes him happy.

It makes Apollo's face burn red. It's cute. "Oh, okay. Okay. That's good. Great, I mean. Okay."

"I don't live in this area though. And I'm still in high school." Leo raises an eyebrow.

Apollo winces. "Yeah, me too. The living here part, I mean- I live a few cities eastward. What high school?"

"CHB."

"No way!" Apollo looks delighted with the news. "I graduated from there! I live in an apartment a few streets away actually, by the mall."

"Oh, cool." Convenient. If Apollo really does live there than Leo wouldn't mind calling him up to play more video games. "Wait, _graduated?_ How old are you?"

"Twenty four-" Jesus, he's a year older than Nyssa. Seven years older than Leo. Maybe Leo just has a type, with Jason being 18, and Calypso being 19. "-Wait, how old are you?"

Leo mentally debates lying. He goes with the truth though. "Seventeen. Turning legal in August." He feels like it's very important to mention when he's going to be legal. Very important.

"Seventeen," Apollo mumbles. He grins at Leo. "Yeah, I can work with that. I'll wait till August to get busy with you."

"Gross," Leo smirks. "You're just a pervert."

"I think I like you, though." Apollo steps closer. "If the past few hours mean anything, I'm down."

"Oh God. You're the worst."

"The _best_ ," Apollo corrects, winking.

"I can't tell if you have an eye problem?" Leo gestures to Apollo's face. "It keeps twitching for some reason."

Apollo pouts. "You're so mean."

This time it's Leo who winks. "Agree to disagree. Don't you have to leave or something? It's pretty late."

"I'm waiting for a kiss goodnight from the fair lady." Apollo bows.

Leo aims a finger gun at him. He flicks up his index finger, shooting Apollo in the chest. Apollo staggers dramatically, and hold his hands to his heart. "Ah, shot by Cupid himself."

"Go home, Lester."

"Anything for my prince." And with a finger salute. Apollo is gone. It would've been cooler if he hadn't tripped. When he leaves the building, and Leo peers outside, he catches Apollo jumping around and screaming " _Yes! Yes!_ " to himself. Apollo stumbles into a fire hydrant, apologizes to it, and continues fist pumping the air.

Leo doesn't know if he's met a cool guy with dorky qualities, or a dork trying to act cool. He'll have to figure it over time.

His face is starting to hurt. He can't stop smiling. He might be sick with something because his stomach is twisting- he's definitely coming down with something. Leo doesn't care.

"Leo!" Leo turns his head, hearing footsteps crunching in the snow. It's Piper and Jason. "Are you okay?"

Piper envelops him in a hug of warmth. Leo pats her back awkwardly. "You're kind of taking my breath away. Not in the good way."

"Oops," Piper lets go. She then punches him in the gut. "What the _fuck_."

Leo doubles over in pain. "I think- _ow_ \- I should be saying that."

"You can't just disappear like that! You're lucky you weren't kidnapped." Piper's eyes gleam with terror. "Or worse."

"Okay."

Piper hooks her arm around Leo's neck and rubs her knuckles into his head. "At least you're okay, you jerkface."

"Ow, ow! I've got a tender scalp, lady!" Leo claws at her tight headlock ineffectively.

Piper releases him after a couple more painful seconds. "Let's just get back to the room. I'm so pooped out. I think my voice is leaving me, did you just hear that crack?"

"It's part of male puberty, comes with the boner." Leo supplies. He's falling back into his normal conversation banter. Jason's oddly quiet, and holding something in his pocket. "What's that?"

"What?" Jason blinks. "Oh, yeah, you left your hat. I grabbed it for you before we left."

"Thanks, man." Leo greedily grabs his hat and stuffs it on his head. "Not sure what I might do without ya. I might've died without it."

Jason rolls his eyes. "Yeah, no problem. That's what friends are for."

Leo's smile fades a bit. Somehow, the hours spent escaping with Apollo had made him forget just _what_ he was escaping.

"Yeah. What friends are for, buddy."

* * *

Leo shouldn't. He totally shouldn't. The temptation is hard to resist, but he shouldn't.

Fuck it. He snatches the bottle and hides it in his bag. And now, he waits.

It's been officially six days since Leo's left his comfortable home and bed and irritating family. The group had collectively decided that they felt mildly homesick, but on the drive back Aphrodite had apparently seen the most _beautiful_ scenery- which, of course, meant that they _absolutely_ had to camp out and enjoy the sights. So Aphrodite had Jason drive them back to the nearest store for camping supplies.

Leo finds this very unfair considering that Aphrodite stole the good tent for herself, and left the teenagers with the small one. So he took her vodka bottle. Or maybe it's wine? Either way, he was going to drink it and pass out. It seemed like the perfect ending.

"Wasn't the sunset just _beautiful_?" Aphrodite is actually wiping a tear from her eye.

"There's one every day, Mom." Drew glares. She's not very pleased about the turn of events and wants everyone to know it. "Let's go home now."

"You kids need to be more active! Go outside and enjoy nature!" Drew's mom responds cheerfully. "I used to love star gazing."

"Is that why you're going in your tent right now?" Drew scowls.

"Aw, don't be like that sweetie. It's good for you, trust me! Enjoy the world." Aphrodite is officially sectioned off from the rest of the world as her tent's zipper flies closed.

"Oh my _god_." Drew curses. "There's no connection right here. What's the point of an unlimited data plan if there's no data?"

Jason offers politely, "You can use my phone if it's that important."

Drew stares suspiciously. "What phone is it?"

"I don't know?" Jason shrugs. He has a light blue case that's a bit plain. There's also a crack running across the top that Leo caused, not knowing the device was so delicate. "Uh, iPhone 6?"

Drew gasps and draws away, overly horrified. "You caveman. Barbarian. Savage."

Piper rolls her eyes, and points at Drew. "Stop calling my boyfriend names."

"Primitive, _prehistoric_ -"

"Quit it."

"-Ancient and obsolete-"

As entertaining as it is, Leo can't take it. "Shut up. I've got the alcohol, so let's make your teenage panties wet right now."

Jason makes a face. " _Gross_."

Leo reaches into his bag and points the bottle at Jason. "You don't have to participate, Buzzkill Lightyear. My panties are fucking wet, and I'm doing this."

Drew snatches the bottle from his hands. "Where'd you even get this? When did Valdez get so cool?"

"Speaking of cool, can we go in the tent? Why are we just standing out here in the dark and cold?" Piper shivers.

"Wait no," Leo looks through the bags they bought at the store. In his bag, he bought s'mores materials- and more importantly, sticks. "Let's make a campfire."

"With what fire?" Drew folds her arms as Leo arranges a neat pile of sticks. Jason helps out by grabbing any branches within arm's reach. Piper throws a bunch of dead leaves on top.

"This one!" Leo flicks out his lighter and lights a stick. He throws the stick in the pile, and sure enough, there's a small fire going after a few minutes. "S'mores and wine, the best way to dine."

Piper examines the label carefully. "This is champagne."

"S'mores and champagne, the best path to pain," Leo amends.

Drew sticks her nose up snottily. She sits in between Leo and Piper. "You can't get drunk off champagne."

"You bet your ass you can. It's 40% alcohol." Leo doesn't know what percentage of alcohol is actually in it, but he does know it's possible to get drunk off of it. At least 40 sounds believable.

"It's 12.2%," Jason corrects from Leo's other side.

Leo raises an eyebrow. "How do you know that? Am I secretly sharing liquor with an AA member?"

"I have a wine cellar. And champagne I guess." Jason's brows furrow. "You know that. Remember when we broke into it?"

"Oh, yeah." Leo shrugs. "Huh."

"Can you pass the marshmallows?" It seems that in the time that everyone was conversing, Piper was assembling a giant whopper of an s'more.

"I'm opening this." Drew mumbles, heading for the Jeep. "Mom has a bottle opener somewhere in the car."

"Oh _shit_ ," Leo remembers something Jake told him earlier. "There's a flask in the glove compartment, get that too."

"You're insane, Leo," Piper surmises, watching her marshmallow brown. Jason nods fervently.

"Have you ever gotten drunk before?" Jason asks curiously.

"Uhh, do you guys not remember sneaking into Jake's room to steal pornos 'n beer?" There are a few other times that Leo doesn't want to mention because they were kind of pathetic. He would feel insecure or ignored and would slip into Jake's room to steal, well, pornos and beer. It's only happened maybe three times, though. Around when Leo was 14 or 15, maybe.

"Yeah," Jason whispers because he is oddly ashamed of having fallen to his perverted instincts with Leo when they were 14.

"Got it." Drew swaggers her way back. She had both a bottle opener and a flask. "Valdez, you sure know how to pick the good kind."

"It was your mom's."

"I figured as much."

"No wait this is _perfect_ \- I've got some music we can listen to." Leo shuffles through his bag. He finds Calypso's CD and runs to the car. After some fiddling, soft music floods over them. It's indie pop, but somehow a lot better than the crap that Piper listens to. It sounds personal, like Leo's bathing in Calypso. Mmm.

Leo grabs the silver flask. It doesn't smell like much but future regrets and interesting stories to tell his children (if he has any- there's a road, not even a 5-minute walk from here, and he doubts an intoxicated version of himself would care much about looking both ways).

"Ooh, bubbles." Drew drinks straight from the champagne bottle. "It's kind of sweet."

"Ew, use a cup next time," Leo complains, swapping bottles. He wipes the top off with his shirt before indulging. "It is kind of sweet. Like… uh." Leo snaps to try and remember the word.

"Sparkling water," Drew supplies.

"Yeah. But better? Better-ish?"

"Mhm."

"Wow," Jason says. He's building a s'more too, except his marshmallows hardly turn a shade darker before he snatches his stick away. "You two are agreeing with each other."

"You should try some, Jay." Leo nudges him with his elbow. "Try it, try it."

"Sorry, I'm the designated driver."

"What?"

"Yep."

"Ugh." Leo turns to Piper. "Piper, You should try some too."

"Huh? What?" Piper looks up from the fire. She must've been thinking very hard- something is definitely on her mind. Maybe this'll make her more open. "Oh, thanks, but I'm good."

"Come on, you spoilsport little sister of mine." Drew pushes the bottle into Piper's hand. Piper looks rightfully uncertain.

"Just take a sip." Leo urges. He wants his friend to have fun with him. He wants to have fun with his friend. "For _me_?"

Piper stares, before tilting the bottle to her lips. "Fine."

* * *

The bottle gets thrown a few feet away by Drew, who drinks most of it anyway. Leo's very irritated, so he steals the flask and refuses to share with her. He does share with Piper, who thinks the taste is unpleasant but still drinks with him.

Jason is the one who taste-tested the flask to see if it's poison ("Why do I have to try it?" "Cause you're the designated driver." "What?" " Yep."). It wasn't. Just vodka.

"You know, you're not that bad, not that bad." Drew leans her head on Leo's shoulder. "You're good to me, don't- don't care about the mean things I say."

"You says mean things, Drews. But you're honesty, y'know?" Leo says back, and the two giggle like children.

Drew's fingers tangle up with Leo's. "I know I makes it hard? I make it really hard for peoples to like my- no, I means me. I makes it really harsh for peoples to like me."

Her breath smells really weird, but Leo's not going to say anything. He's also getting a bit cold, he thinks. The CD stops playing, making Leo groan.

"You know, maybe we should get inside the tent, guys." Ever the responsible, Lip Scar starts talking. "Jeez, Piper, are you crying?"

" _No_."

"Come here. Let's get you all warm and asleep in. The. Tent."

"No."

"Leo? Drew?"

Leo stands up, before falling back on his butt again. "I dunno, Grayson, gravity's saying nah."

Jason looks exasperated. He sighs and lifts Drew up by her armpits. Drew whines, kicking wildly. "I'll stab you, Jace! With ma boot!"

"Jeez, Drew, how much do you weigh?" Jason drags the girl into the tent.

"Nothin'! I'm not fatty Drew no'more! I'm air. you hear me? _Air_ \- hey Lemme go! Lemme go!" With her hands flying everywhere, it's no surprise that Jason gets slapped in the face. Suits him for being a meanie, is what Leo thinks.

"I heard that." Jason half-heartedly glares at Leo. Oops.

Drew retreats to the tent after some soft coaxing from Jason. He looks towards Piper and Leo and is about to say something when Piper raises her hand like she's in the middle of class.

"Lemme talk to Leo first, alright? Lemme just talk to him. Then Imma go in, 'kay?"

Jason reluctantly nods. He looks like he wants to stay outside, but based off of the wild sobs coming from Drew, it seems like he's much needed elsewhere.

"You wanna talk to me?" Leo sits next to Piper. He lays down and touches the dirty snow. "Let's talk abou'it."

"Leo," Piper sighs. "You're gonna puke if ya lay down like that."

"No I won't."

"You are."

"I won't. I promise." Leo cushions his head by folding his arms underneath them. "So wassup?"

"You."

"No I'm down. Down'ere."

Piper lies her head on Leo's stomach. "I love you, but I don't think you love me back."

"Wha? Of course I love ya."

"No, you don't, you _don't_!" Piper's frustration leaks onto Leo's coat. "You don't hang out with me no more. You never come over no more. You're just avoiding me!"

"Okay."

"No, it's not okay!" Piper sits up suddenly and pushes on Leo's stomach. "It's not okay, it's not _okay_!"

"Ohfuck." Leo feels the bile coming up his throat, inching further every time Piper presses down. He stumbles up and jogs as best as he can to a far point from the camp. And he pukes out his guts.

"Gross," Piper snickers. She has tears in her eyes. "You're really gross but I love ya."

Leo wipes his mouth. "Eugh."

"Come back home wifme, Leo." She grabs him tightly, crying into his stomach. She's sitting on her knees and he feels tall for once, standing above her. "Come home with me."

"Duh." Leo groans, sliding to his knees. They're on equal heights now, equal levels. "How else am I gonna get home? I can barely drive."

Piper laughs, and grabs Leo's face and kisses him. Straight on the lips, vomit and alcohol and joy everywhere. She's so excited, she hugs him again. Piper's such a hugger, that Leo might throw up again.

"No more avoiding, ya got me, bro? It makes me sad, it makes JayJay sad. But no more, right?"

"No more. Leggo please."

"Nah. I'm never letting go of you. So you'll never ever escape from- from me." Piper rubs her face into Leo's shoulder.

"Okay then, you dessert- desert- deserve it." Leo hiccups and then burps in Piper's face.

Piper doesn't move. She remains strong and holds on with what must be all the strength in her body. "You're a gross booger. _My_ gross booger. My best friend gross booger."

"Piper! Piiiiiiiiiper! Lemme go."

"No."

" _Yes_!"

"No!"

The argument carries on for at least ten minutes before Jason comes out, and both Leo and Piper are crying in each other's arms.

"What's going on, guys?" He asks worriedly. "Guys, you okay?"

"Come here, Jay." Leo wails. "C'mere."

Jason hesitantly joins the duo. They willingly pull in Jason, completing their circle.

"I love you guys so much, I love you guys so much," Piper bawls. "I love you guys so much. I don't ever wanna leave each other,"

"I know," Jason says gently. It's him pulling the other two to his chest now, rubbing their hands carefully. "I know."

And Leo? He lets out all of his tears.

He feels so light now. He feels so perfect.

Leo is loved.

Nothing can touch him.

He is _invincible_.


	16. e (4)

**e**

"Do we have to play this? Harley doesn't even know how to play." Leo complains loudly. "He keeps stealing all the houses."

"Harley put back the houses," Nyssa says gently.

"I'm making an investment," Harley assures Nyssa, not making any move to give back the tiny houses. He stacks his colorful money on the table and folds his hands neatly.

"You don't even know what an investment is," Leo says sourly. Leo hates Monopoly because it always ends up being a giant _thing_ when it comes to his family.

"Yes, I do!" Harley's very much offended. "My teacher was talking about it in class."

"What is it?" Leo leans on his elbows. "Enlighten me on what your third-grade teacher taught you. Can you even multiply?"

"Yes, I even know 12 times 12! But, uh, 1 times 1 is 1. 1 times 2 is 2. 1 times 3 is 3..." Harley proudly counts the numbers off on his fingers. While doing this, Leo manages to steal an entire 500 dollar bill from Harley's stack.

"Hey, Leo," Jake calls from the kitchen. "Do you do any extracurriculars?"

"Unfortunately."

"Let me hear it."

Leo lists off the robotics club that he's kind of in but kind of not in, and the cross country team. He mentally debates listing gardening and art, considering they're in the same room. He also tells Jake those two clubs, only to seem a bit more impressive.

"Harley, you can stop," Nyssa has an uncomfortable look by the time Harley gets to his 8 times tables. "It's your roll anyway."

Harley has an uncanny ability to roll 2 doubles and miss the third one to avoid going to Jail. When he lands on a property of Nyssa's, Leo groans, knowing how Harley would spend the next ten minutes giving a speech so Nyssa would forget about him paying.

He gets up to refill his cup. Jake's parked out by the microwave, eating chili and typing on his phone. Jake actually has a smartphone, as well as Nyssa, but Leo was the only one to opt out. Harley's dying for a phone too, but who was he going to call- _Spongebob_?

"That looks disgusting," Leo comments, taking a spoon out to sample Jake's food.

"Yeah, that's great," Jake says absentmindedly.

"I'm gonna spit in your food," Leo continues, spooning some of the food into a bowl, after he deems it very _not_ disgusting.

"Okay, Leo."

"I'm putting bleach in it." Leo pours salt into Jake's bowl and mixes it up.

"Wash your hands, it stains clothes."

"I hate you."

"Mhm."

Leo comes back to Harley throwing Monopoly money in the air and screaming something about a money party. Nyssa is happily collecting the bills around her, as she taps her piece around the board.

"Is it my turn?" Leo sits back down, bowl in hand. Wait. He totally forgot his juice.

When he gets back _again_ , Leo's stack of money is suspiciously a lot smaller than it should be. Both Nyssa and Harley grin at him, though the latter is busy with picking up the money he threw around carelessly.

It's a good thing Leo kept a couple thousand dollars (ironically stolen from both of his siblings) in his pocket.

Leo rolls a five. His tiny top hat clicks around the board, to land on his own property. Leo only has six properties, but he always manages to avoid the rows of hotels lined up waiting for him.

Leo's phone vibrates. And then it vibrates again. And again. And again.

 **RED [19:02]:** Nico's birthday present?  
 **RED [19:02]:** Also happy new years, everyone  
 **THING ONE [19:05]:** oh yh hppy nw yrs  
 **THING TWO [19:07]:** Jeez Trav what's up with ur typing  
 **THING ONE [19:07]:** dnt jdge me  
 **THING TWO [19:08]:** I don't even know what that says so  
 **RED [19:10]:** Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dumb get your act together  
 **RED [19:10]:** Last year, our gift to Nico was lame  
 **THING ONE [19:11]:** he ws an 8th grder  
 **THING ONE [19:11]:** he cld only 3 2 things:  
 **THING ONE [19:11]:** pron n videgms  
 **THING TWO [19:12]:** I think you said porn and videogames but I couldn't hear you over the stupid texting  
 **THING ONE [19:12]:** jkes on u cuz u cnt hear me bt u cn rd me  
 **ME [19:12]:**?  
 **THING ONE [19:13]:** oh, hey Leo  
 **THING ONE [19:13]:** we're brainstorming things for nico  
 **ME [19:13]:** i know  
 **THING TWO [19:16]:** If I knew Leo would change your typing habits I would've invited him over a lot earlier  
 **THING ONE [19:16]:** Connor.  
 **THING TWO [19:16]:** :P  
 **RED [19:19]:** That aside  
 **RED [19:19]:** Nico's birthday present?

"Leo, Harley owes you 12 bucks."

"No, I don't! I didn't land on his property."

"You clearly did."

"Nuh-uh."

"Oh my God, Harley, just because you have the dark blue, doesn't mean you also have the light blue property."

"Well, maybe I _should_." Harley jumps over the table.

 **ME [19:21]:** what's he normally do in his free time?  
 **THING TWO [19:23]:** He's into a book series right now.  
 **THING ONE [19:25]:** he's more into the movies though  
 **THING TWO [19:25]:** No hes not  
 **THING ONE [19:25]:** yes he is tho  
 **THING TWO [19:27]:** He has the books autographed  
 **THING ONE [19:28]:** he went to the screenings before they officially came out  
 **THING TWO [19:28]:** What? When?  
 **THING ONE [19:28]:** the second movie  
 **THING ONE [19:28]:** not the original or the remake  
 **THING ONE [19:28]:** but yknow the sequel  
 **THING ONE [19:28]:** it was like three years ago  
 **ME [19:29]:** ninth grade?  
 **THING ONE [19:29]:** uh for you maybe  
 **THING ONE [19:29]:** i think nico was in sixth at the time  
 **THING ONE [19:29]:** you know he had killer acne  
 **ME [19:29]:** he still has it  
 **THING ONE [19:30]:** yeah but it was really bad  
 **THING ONE [19:30]:** like imagine a pizza  
 **THING ONE [19:30]:** but with only three strands of cheese  
 **THING ONE [19:30]:** that was his face  
 **RED [19:34]:** That doesn't even make sense  
 **THING TWO [19:36]:** Wait was his acne the cheese or  
 **THING ONE [19:38]:** no shut up  
 **THING ONE [19:38]:** its the red sauce part  
 **THING TWO [19:40]:** So why is there only 3 cheese strands  
 **THING ONE [19:45]:** connor  
 **THING ONE [19:45]:** connor  
 **THING ONE [19:45]:** connor  
 **THING ONE [19:45]:** hey con  
 **THING ONE [19:45]:** con hey guess what con  
 **RED [19:46]:** Oh my God  
 **THING TWO [19:48]:** What  
 **RED [19:48]:** You fool  
 **THING ONE [19:48]:** shut the fuck up connor thats what  
 **THING TWO [19:50]:** You shut up  
 **THING ONE [19:50]:** you shut up  
 **THING TWO [19:50]:** Stop it or I'll tell the thing  
 **THING ONE [19:51]:** what thing  
 **THING ONE [19:51]:** hey con  
 **THING ONE [19:51]:** con  
 **THING ONE [19:51]:** con con con con conno r  
 **THING TWO [19:52]:** You know. The thing you lied about. To Leo.  
 **ME [19:53]:** what  
 **ME [19:53]:** what thing  
 **ME [19:53]:** why r we lying to leo what did he do  
 **THING ONE [19:53]:** what  
 **THING ONE [19:54]:** when have i lied to leo  
 **RED [19:57]:** Oh yeah, no I remember too.  
 **THING TWO [19:59]:** Okay Leo, I want you to imagine something  
 **THING TWO [19:59]:** Picture a trophy. With a person on it. A little figure  
 **THING ONE [19:59]:** fuCK YOU  
 **ME [20:00]:** yeah  
 **THING ONE [20:00]:** i SWEAR TO GOD CON  
 **THING TWO [20:02]:** Now this little figure is wearing ice skates. It's an ice skater.  
 **THING TWO [20:02]:** There's a name on the plague. It says Travis Stoll.  
 **THING TWO [20:03]:** It's a first place ice skating trophy.  
 **ME [20:04]:** huh  
 **THING TWO [20:04]:** Now it gets even better though.  
 **ME [20:04]:** how?  
 **THING ONE [20:05]:** IM KICKING YOU OUT OF OUR HOUSE. YOURE NO LONGER A STOLL  
 **THING ONE [20:05]:** FUCK YOU  
 **THING TWO [20:06]:** There's more than one trophy. There's seven of them.

"Leo it's your roll."

Leo rolls and lands in jail. Nyssa sighs, as it's her turn to go, and she is about to roll into the Harley's Property Of Hell portion of the board.

 **ME [20:07]:** so travis can skate  
 **THING TWO [20:07]:** Real good  
 **THING TWO [20:07]:** He taught Nico how to skate cause he's that good  
 **ME [20:08]:** thats cool  
 **ME [20:08]:** weird he wanted lessons though  
 **ME [20:09]:** but its cool  
 **THING ONE [20:09]:** it's not lame?  
 **THING ONE [20:09]:** that a guy can ice skate  
 **THING ONE [20:10]:** i quit years ago but  
 **ME [20:11]:** no  
 **ME [20:11]:** ice skatings hard, if u can do it thats gr8  
 **ME [20:11]:** its cool  
 **THING ONE [20:14]:** oh  
 **ME [20:14]:** tho next time dont ask me for lessons u liar  
 **ME [20:14]:** how the fuck do u want me to teach a pro  
 **THING TWO [20:16]:** UGH  
 **THING TWO [20:16]:** WHY CANT YOU SAY TRAVIS IS A BAD PERSON  
 **THING ONE [20:16]:** FUCK YOU  
 **RED [20:25]:** I'm ordering the Director's Cut of Mythomagic then  
 **RED [20:25]:** Since that's what I'm getting from when we were actually on topic  
 **RED [20:25]:** Thanks for the help.  
 **RED [20:25]:** All. Of. The. Help.  
 **RED [20:26]:** :|  
 **THING ONE [20:27]:** tbh nico would take anything tho  
 **THING ONE [20:27]:** hes also rich so  
 **THING ONE [20:27]:** also ur rich so wtf dont you know what the rich people want  
 **THING TWO [20:28]:** Pay more taxes Red  
 **THING ONE [20:29]:** yeah  
 **RED [20:29]:** I'm leaving this conversation now.  
 **THING ONE [20:31]:** you might be the 1% but you could be the 1% that cares  
 **RED [20:31]:** Goodbye

"Leo, I'm not sure how, but I think you died. In Monopoly." Nyssa stares incredulously at the board.

Harley throws his money in the air again. "Winning is great! Money Party!"

"You're cleaning this up."

" _Yes,_ Nyssa."

* * *

"I swear they were just here," Leo shuffles through his folder. "Let me keep looking."

Malcolm peers into Leo's bag. "Come on, man. How are we supposed to work on a project if we don't have the plans."

Shawn folds his arms. "So now what are we going to do?"

"I'm really sorry, you guys. I swear, I was working on them last night, and I put it in my bag." Leo feels sick because the last thing he would want is this group of really great people to turn against him. He can picture it perfectly, how they would give him the cold shoulder for the rest of his life. It's terrible.

Annabeth looks over Leo's shoulder. "Calm down. Leo, don't you have pictures of your blueprints on your phone?"

"Uh, yeah." Leo shrugs. "But I have a tiny screen, so-"

"No. Just send it to me, and I'll print it out," Annabeth rolls her ponytail up into a tight bun. "See? Not everything is lost."

Leo sends the picture, and Annabeth tells him to check the printer in the library.

When Leo walks with the paper load, he passes the office, and sees Piper and Jason. Hmm. Leo speedwalks a _little_ faster (hardly a change of pace if you ask him) until Jason catches him.

Leo hears a "Yo, wait up!" and stops abruptly.

"You walk fast," Piper huffs. "Nearly missed you."

"Why are you guys here? It's Friday." Leo covers his frown by holding his papers close to his body.

Jason shrugs. "We were going to have a Dr Who marathon when we realized it'll be a lot better with you."

"What?" Leo snaps. "Was that before or after you put the DVD in and realized I wasn't there?"

" _What?_ " Piper's voice echoes through the empty halls. They jog up a flight of stairs, all squished on one side. "We wanted to see what you were doing that takes up all your time of Fridays."

"It's nothing." Leo feels a bit bad that he made such an angry remark, but he also _doesn't_ feel bad. "I just help out with this club."

"Yeah but you've been doing it forever," Jason says. They arrive at the door. Through the wood, Leo can hear the loud talking and noise the group normally makes.

Leo turns to them, smiling broadly. "Well, this is my stop. I'll see you over the weekend then?"

Piper peers through the door's window. "Whoa, there's a lot of people in there. What _is_ this place?"

"A club." Leo holds the doorknob behind his back. "Hey, I heard this diner has this couple's meal that you two would love..."

Jason's hand goes on top of Leo's to push open the door. Leo's dismayed to find that he doesn't receive any sporadic bursts of strength to stop Jason from doing this.

"Thank _you_ ," Annabeth quickly appears and disappears in front of Leo's eyes, to steal the papers and hand them out to her club. Calypso looks up from her plans to eye the trio at the door suspiciously and raise an eyebrow.

Leo only shrugs.

* * *

"Leo, what's that?"

"Leave it alone, Jason." Leo snatches his papers back. The blond was getting all of Leo's belongings out of order, to try and 'organize' them. " _Seriously,_ leave it alone."

"So you're here every Friday?" Jason sighs and begins tapping the desk.

"Yes. Like I said the first few times." Leo writes down the number from his calculator.

"And you just do math. And physics." Jason's tapping is starting to get _really_ annoying _really_ fast. It's more annoying that it's such a _Leo_ thing to do- Leo likes bothering Jason whenever he's doing something important. Perhaps this is the type of karma that comes after years of teasing.

"Yes, Jason. Like I said. The first. Few. Times."

"Hey Leo, can I ask something real quick?" Christopher comes over with his face buried in a notebook. He looks up, and his eyes dart between Jason and Leo. "Uh nevermind, I'll... come back."

Jason watches Chris leave before leaning across the table. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Unless you can figure out how to cut down the weight of a fucking robot to make it fly, probably not."

It takes exactly 3.14 seconds for Jason to open his mouth again. The number is the shortened number for pi, and it makes Leo want to smash Jason's face into a pie. "Can I help?"

"Actually." Leo slams his pencil down because he's not able to work like this. "I think the Gardening group just over there needs help moving soil. They're pretty weak, and would really appreciate it."

"Alright, thanks." Jason looks relieved to find something to do. He follows the direction of the group Leo directed him to.

Clovis lifts his head up from his resting position a few seats down. "That Jason Grace?"

"Mhm."

"Never seen him in person but I've heard about him. You guys are friends?"

"The best."

"Oh."

"Mhm."

* * *

When the semester ends in the middle of January, Leo's classes get to switch up. He no longer enjoys the torture of Stat as his first class of the day, but instead gets to wait an entire day before signing himself off to a world of pain.

(Though secretly he rather does enjoy Stat. Leo just happens to like numbers, and Stat happens to put those numbers to _use_.)

It's AP World, AP Lit, Spanish, Photo, and AP Stat, with Lunch and a Free period stuck in the middle somewhere. With the teachers stressing about upcoming AP tests in a few months, it makes Leo nervous and wondering why the _fuck_ did he take so many?

He had assumed during his time in middle school and freshman year that he was just going to kick back and relax during his last year before college. But when last year came around, Leo panicked with choosing classes because he didn't want to be stuck taking just art classes and English.

His guidance counselor recommended creating an impressive transcript, but one that Leo could actually get good grades with. Unfortunately, Leo just played _Eenie Meenie Minie Mo_ with choosing classes at that point. He had texted Piper and Jason to make sure their schedules were identical enough to increase the chances of sharing a class.

" _Don't choose classes because your friends joined it._ " His counselor, a strict looking woman with a tight bun and a big chest, had said during freshman orientation. Leo did exactly what she said not to do, and choose his classes based on his best friends' decisions for his four years of high school.

Regardless of Leo's mistakes, it was too late to switch up his classes or sign up for a new one.

His world class no longer has Piper, but instead both Calypso and Travis. And Drew, but she ignores Leo (and vice versa). However, his Lit class has both Piper and Jason. His Spanish class is about half of its previous size, and his Photo class no longer has Nico aka the only thing that might've gotten Leo to an A. Surprisingly, both Calypso and Rachel join his Stat class.

"Awesome," Travis fist pumps when he, Leo and Calypso manage to sit in a group together. "It's me and you bro."

As Leo knocks knuckles with Travis, it takes him a moment to realize that Calypso and Travis have never met before. It's hard to remember which friends are friends with whom, making Leo wonder how Piper can juggle knowing practically everyone in the school.

Calypso looks unimpressed. "I only do poster boards and slideshows."

"I can work with that," Travis nods and leans back.

Yes, Leo can also work with this arrangement too.

* * *

 **3 [15:15]:** ;3 3  
 **ME [15:19]:** new phone who diss  
 **3 [15:19]:** apollo!  
 **ME [15:21]:** i dont knw any apollos  
 **3 [15:22]:**? this isn't leo ?  
 **ME [15:22]:** no  
 **ME [15:22]:** who's leo?  
 **3 [15:23]:** this boy i like? he's cute and funny  
 **3 [15:23]:** ah, it's nothing, sorry to interrupt your day.  
 **ME [15:26]:** no wait  
 **ME [15:26]:** u think im funny  
 **ME [15:26]:** (its leo btw)  
 **3 [15:26]:** uh noooo who told you that  
 **ME [15:27]:** u just did  
 **3 [15:28]:** no i didnt  
 **ME [15:28]:** no no it's good  
 **ME [15:28]:** u also think im cute?  
 **3 [15:29]:** i mean yeah of course  
 **3 [15:29]:** but saying that is illegal  
 **ME [15:31]:** oh  
 **3 [15:32]:** yeah  
 **3 [15:32]:** are you in school or something? or maybe skipping?  
 **ME [15:34]:** im walking home actually  
 **3 [15:37]:** hey why don't u come down to my store  
 **3 [15:37]:** i own a music store  
 **ME [15:39]:** hmm  
 **ME [15:39]:** do i have to know how to play something  
 **3 [15:40]:** you already know how to play with my heart  
 **3 [15:40]:** kidding, no past musical knowledge required  
 **3 [15:40]:** we can just hangout or something, it's been a bit slow today  
 **ME [15:42]:** i'd like that  
 **3 [15:42]:** me too  
 **ME [15:43]:** :)  
 **3 [15:43]:** :)

* * *

Leo's bike is a rusty old red thing with two flat tires and an unsteady seat. He fixes the seat easily, but he has to walk the bike to the gas station to add air to it.

When he rides back, Leo finds Jason walking. Leo slows down and rings his bell, startling Jason.

"Yo."

"Hey."

Leo jumps off his bike to walk beside Jason. "Where you walking to?"

"Your house actually."

"You never walk to my house. Your house is too far."

"I know," Jason grunts. He's holding his arm weirdly- like it's delicate and in pain. "I didn't come from my house."

"Hm." Leo adjusts his jacket. It was a bit hot for winter, allowing Leo to only wear a thin jacket and his scarf. "Hey, what're you doing for Piper's birthday? February is coming up soon."

"It's also our first Valentine's day together," Jason looks up to the overcast sky. "I'm not really sure... I think Piper might be getting tired of me."

Leo laughs because Piper getting tired of _Jason?_ Yeah, _sure._ Jason Grace might be the most perfect person in the entire world. He's the Prince Charming of fairy tales- the James Bond of the real world.

While a part of Leo wants to just feed Jason's fears until the boy gets insecure, Leo doesn't do anything of the sort.

"I doubt it. Piper's been dreaming of this day since we were 14," Leo lies. Although he strongly suspected it, Leo hadn't officially known about Piper's attraction to Jason until Jason called him on the phone oh so many months ago. After years of joking around with both Piper and Jason, Leo hadn't expected anything to _actually_ happen.

"Really?" Jason perks up. He starts biting his lip, with his lip scar stretching. "But Piper's so great, and I'm not sure I'm what she wants. She might be getting bored of me."

"She might. I know I am right now."

Jason disregards Leo. "Sometimes, Piper doesn't want to go on the dates I suggest? Or she just doesn't want to hang out. Are you sure she still likes me?"

Leo stops suddenly. Jason nearly walks off, before realizing Leo was behind.

"Jason, you do realize you're the most clingy person I know, right?" Leo says bluntly.

Jason acts like it's the first time he's heard this- and maybe it _is_. _"What?"_

"You're super clingy," Leo explains. "You're way too protective. God- has no one really told you?"

" _No_."

Leo continues walking. "Well, you _are_. I blame your daddy issues."

"I don't have-" Jason pauses and lowers his voice. "I don't have daddy issues."

"Yeah you do," Leo snorts. "You're emotionally constipated."

"Am not." They arrive at Leo's house. Leo leaves his bike in the driveway, hoping Nyssa doesn't run it over like she used to, and unlocks the front door. They head straight to Leo's room, not paying much mind to Jake or Harley.

Festus is loyally sitting outside of Leo's door. "Jason, you've got to shit your feelings out. Let it go with the Pepto Bismol of life."

"I'm not emotionally constipated, and I don't have daddy issues." Jason tries to sound sure of himself. "Aren't daddy issues only for women?"

"That's really sexist, Jay. Guess we're going to add that to the list."

Jason sits on Leo's bed. "Everyone has problems with their dad. I'm not special."

"Not everyone has a dad who completely _ignores_ their kid." Leo shuffles through his sock drawer. He knows he threw his phone around here _somewhere_.

Jason stares at Leo with the most perplexed look. "Uh, _you_ do Leo."

Leo pauses and looks up. "That's different."

"How is it different?"

"It just _is_ ," Leo slams the drawer closed. He breathes in and out slowly. "Yo man, just accept you're clingy and need to relax. Take Piper out to eat, I know she loves Italian."

"But-"

"And for her birthday, just bake her something. Chicks love food, okay? Get her a necklace- nothing too fancy." Leo says in his no-nonsense tone. He flips open his phone to find there's only one message from Apollo. Leo smiles softly.

 **3 [17:09]:** had fun, 10/10 would do again. ;-)

"Why'd you actually come here?" Leo collapses on the bed. "I know it wasn't to talk about Piper."

"No." Jason tilts his head. "Check it out."

He pulls up his sleeve, to reveal a white bandage covering his forearm.

"What? Did you get hurt?"

"Nah," Jason grins, peeling off the bandage. "Though it did hurt the first couple of minutes."

"Holy fuck." Leo stares at Jason's arm. He has a tattoo now, one all thick and black and _there_. It says SPQR, with an eagle, and 12 broad and bold stripes. "Uh, you know this shit is permanent, right?"

"Yep. I like it though." Jason pushed back the bandage. "I haven't shown Piper yet, cause I thought you should be the first."

"Aw," Leo gags. "You love me."

Jason rolls his eyes. "Anyway, there was this girl there with these really great tattoo ideas. Her name is Echo? That might've just been her nickname, but she seemed like your type."

This statement amuses Leo to no end. "And what exactly is my _type?_ "

"Y'know..."

"No, I kind of _don't_ know," Leo smirks, folding his arms. "What's my type, Jason Grace? What is my type?"

"I don't know," Jason admits. "Just pretty girls, right? Really pretty, nice boobs or something."

"You make me seem like an asshole. A superficial asshole."

Jason's face crinkles up but when he realizes that Leo's poking fun at him, he grins. "Well if I'm so misinformed, tell me about your dream girl."

Leo stares at Jason. "You sure you want to know?"

"Yeah, man. If you're gonna be my wingman, I've got to be your wingman too." Jason's smile is still relaxing on his face.

Leo can imagine that smile sliding off, only to be replaced with confusion and disgust. Jason standing up suddenly and wanting to leave because Leo was making him uncomfortable with his answer. Jason feeling so uncomfortable that he doesn't feel right talking to Leo ever again. The images flipping through Leo's mind like a horror film causes Leo's stomach to knot itself up and his hands feel a bit too clammy.

"Hmm," Leo actually thinks this through. He's not really answering for Jason- this might be a great time to actually put words to his feelings and get his thoughts out. He tries to be careful about pronouns because at this point, Leo doesn't _care_ about who he wants to make out with, but Jason doesn't know that yet. "I would want someone who's funny. So we can laugh together, and get through our issues. Someone who I can hold conversations with for hours, or at least enjoy myself with."

"That's good," Jason says.

Leo's not finished. He closes his eyes, trying to envision the perfect person for him. "They would need to be nice, though not too nice cause I can't _stand_ those people. Similar interests, they should probably like movies and games like me. Gotta like eating food, cause I eat a _lot_. I don't want someone who will follow me and every step I make-" Leo avoids the word clingy for sake of the earlier conversation- "Though it'll be good if they could help me out sometimes? I do stupid things, sometimes."

"Sometimes."

"Shut up." Leo's mind is forming a blob, a beautiful blob forming into a figure of a person. Okay. He's actually getting this out there into the big world. "I can't think of much else. He should be pretty or something but I can't be too picky. Just someone I like who likes me back, really. But, like, they're all out of my league so..."

"Nice man," Jason slaps his hand on Leo's back, before sliding away with confusion written on his face. "Wait, did you say _he_?"

"No." Leo's done for. He feels the metaphorical noose around his neck, tightening, tightening, _tightening-_ "I said she."

"Oh." Jason's a bit hesitant to touch Leo again, making Leo's inner self wither away slowly like petals from a flower. It stings duly because Jason is hesitant when he's only a _fraction_ of suspicious. Leo doesn't want to imagine what would happen if he blurts out, _"Oh hey I like girls a lot, but I might just maybe like guys? Just a bit?"_

The emotional bomb that'll come from " _I fucking love you Jason Grace more than you can even know"_ isn't even something Leo wants to ever consider without curling in a ball and sleeping for the rest of his life so he doesn't have to face the repercussions.

If Leo were to think about, there aren't that many openly gay kids at his school. None of which he knew by name, but has heard horror stories about. There is a Gay-Straight Alliance, but going to that would be social suicide, and basically outing himself in front of the entire school.

 _It just doesn't make sense though. Leo Valdez can't like boys_ , is what people would whisper. _It's impossible._

Piper would know. Of course, she would know (though to be honest, Leo's surprised she doesn't know yet). She would avoid his eyes, and speed away from him. The look of betrayal, the look of hurt. The question of _Why? Why? Why why why whywhywhywhywhywhy-_

Jason wouldn't even be in the same room as him. The same boy he's been holding sleepovers with for years likes dick. The same kid who Jason's told nearly his every secret to is a freak.

Nico, Rachel, and the Stolls wouldn't be able to think of him as the cool Senior they know. Because he would already be outed by his class, associating themselves with Leo would make them the social pariahs of their own grades. And Leo couldn't do that to them.

His own mother used to be religious. She didn't go or take Leo to church every single Sunday, but she definitely prayed often enough for Leo to take notice. Raising a gay son- what would she say, if she saw Leo like this?

OhgodohgodohgodtheverythoughtmakesLeowanttonotthinkagain.

"Leo." Jason snaps in front of Leo's face. "You alright there?"

"Great." Leo's not sure how he manages to spit that out because there's a weight tied to the back of Leo's tongue that's pulling into his stomach in the most painful and queasiest ways. He just feels tired now. "Couldn't be better."

"Alright." Jason looks unsure, but he trusts Leo. Leo can't break this trust, not with his own bothersome issues. "So, how are we going to break the tattoo news to Piper?"

* * *

The thing about Hedge is that he's persistent.

So when the gym is closed due to a certain prank (something not done by Leo, but looks a lot similar to something Leo did in freshman year- meaning his legacy is here to stay), and it's all raining outside, cross country practice should've been canceled.

Except the coach happened to be _Coach_ , so the entire group stockpiled into a tiny yellow bus and was driven across town to SPQR. It's a shared meet now.

The CHB students all huddled together in their official sports jackets and water bottles, as they tried not to look too out of place in the gigantic elegance that is SPQR. Which proved itself a bit hard as the jackets all had CHB embezzled on it, and in its drastic orange and black colors.

Hedge strides on like he owns the place.

The gymnasium at CHB is nothing compared to this one. This gym was huge enough to fit 2 basketball courts, and regular neat and shiny bleachers (not the ones CHB has the fold in to make more space). The floors look freshly waxed, and the giant decal of SPQR's mascot stares threateningly from its positions on the wall and center court.

"Alright cupcakes," Hedge claps his hands. "You already know how warm-ups go. Start jogging!"

Leo's only two laps in when Hedge is jogging up to him. "Valdez get those skinny legs of yours moving! What's the matter with you today?!"

"I'm running, I'm running," Leo mumbles. He's really behind, and Leo is almost sure that Cecil Markowitz has passed him at least four times already.

Apparently, his lack of enthusiasm hits again.

"VALDEZ! Where are those extra strides!? You look like an awkward noodle out there! Diaz, go take his place!"

Leo's face floods with embarrassment in the color known as scarlet. Heads fling to his direction, both familiar CHB faces and the joining SPQR ones. He gladly sits out for the rest of practice.

Along the bleachers, there's only a few stragglers still stretching from SPQR. A certain pair are toe-touching in front of Leo's book bag.

"-do they think they are?" The blond male says. Leo instantly dislikes him, simply based on the look of disgust he has, and the whininess in his voice. "Stealing _our_ gym."

"There's enough space to share." Based on the back of her school jacket, the girl's name is Ramirez-Arellano. He's definitely heard that before, probably from Jason. Maybe during the year Jason spent at SPQR, he met her? "It's not too bad."

"I hate it." The male speaks again. He stands up straight and starts doing jumping jacks. "Damn CHB..."

The conversation pauses when Leo passes by and sits down in front of them. Leo drinks water like he hadn't been listening to their conversation.

"You," The male sneers at Leo. "You're sitting on our ID's."

Leo slides his butt over to reveal that _yes_ , Leo had been sitting on two matching IDs for an Octavian and a Reyna. Obviously, the two standing in front of him, based on the pictures. It says they're both seniors and members of the student government.

"Reyna." Leo tastes the name out in his mouth. "You wouldn't have happened to know a Jason, right? Jason Grace."

Reyna's face softens, as she gets down for sit-ups. "I do know him. Why?"

"He's my friend. Just thought your name was familiar. He used to go here, you see?"

"I know," Reyna says in between sit up 15 and 16. Octavian is only on 10. "We had gotten close in our time... Sorry, who are you?"

"Leo. Leo Valdez."

Octavian rolls his eyes. "The guy who was called out a few minutes ago. You all are the least bit professional."

Leo refrains from saying that Octavian looks like a blond dodo bird. A fucked up Draco Malfoy. A burnt potato. A blue-eyed trash can.

Heh.

Reyna looks tired of Octavian's comments but doesn't say anything. She turns back to Leo. "I think I've heard of you from him. Jason hasn't texted me in months, though, sorry."

"Oh."

Reyna gives Leo a smile though. "Tell Jason Grace I say hello. It would be nice to meet up with him again."

* * *

Stuck in between a dry cleaner and a building for lease, is Apollo's Lyre. The store was neatly organized and brightly colored, with guitars and violins lined against the walls. Pop pumps in through unseen stereos, as few people stroll through sections of cases and music books.

Leo places a harmonica on the white countertop. "I'll take this."

Apollo looks up and grins when he sees Leo. "Hey, stranger."

"Hey, stranger." Leo then makes a face. "I can't believe we actually said that to each other."

Apollo puts down his magazine. "I've said worst. You're actually into buying the harmonica?"

"No," Leo toys with the instrument. He runs his finger along the holes on the side. "Just needed an excuse to come here. Might get it for Nyssa's birthday in a few months."

"Who's that?" Apollo acts like he's not actually interested in the answer. "Your girlfriend?"

"Yes." Leo doesn't even blink. "We're so close it's almost like we're siblings. I love her very much."

"Oh," Apollo deflates a bit. He leans on one hand, smushing his cheek. "You need anything else?"

Leo laughs. "She's not my girlfriend, she's my sister. Besides, Nys is about as romantic as a wrench."

"Sister." Apollo looks a bit relieved. "But seriously, need anything else? Kind of have a business to run."

"No one needs you right now." Leo sits on the counter. He picks through the bowls of cheaper products sitting on the counter. "You've got some cool guitar picks over here."

"I made those."

"No wonder they're so cheesy," Leo teases. "It's like watching the Titanic in your fingertips."

"Gee, thanks," Apollo says blandly. He only looks up when he senses a timid looking lady approach carefully.

Leo waits for Apollo to be done with the customer. He watches Apollo's carefree grin that blinds the room and the tiny slit of impossibly suntanned skin (it's mid-winter) that's shown when Apollo stretches and points towards a corner of the store. "Mmm."

"You said something?" Apollo raises an eyebrow.

"Nothing." Leo turns away. "I hear there's a new horror movie coming out later this week about a pirate who has a knife instead of a hook. Argh?"

"Well, shiver me timbers," Apollo leans back in his chair. "Are you asking me out, Leoster?"

"No," Leo says. It's just an outing. For friends. Cute friends that make Leo feel a certain kind of way. How does he relay this to Apollo? "I don't know, maybe?"

"Well, tell me when you've got an answer."

" _Yes_."

Apollo pretends to think but then gives up the pretense quickly. "Of course I'll go with you. When does it come out?"

"Friday. 90 minutes of R rated pirate jokes and fake blood." Leo's getting excited. When Apollo said yes, it was like there was a tiny sparkler going off in Leo's stomach, sending sparks and excitement everywhere. "Maybe we can go get something to eat afterward...?"

"Wait, Friday?" Apollo curses. "Sorry, Leo, I don't think I'll be able to make it. Friday's a bad day for me."

Oh. Leo's internal sparkler fizzles out. He slides off the counter. "If you don't want to go then-"

"No, I do." Apollo grabs Leo's arm. "Trust me, I would _love_ to go with you to the movies. It's just that Fridays are a really bad day for me. Let's go on Sunday."

"Er, sure." Leo had been planning on going with Harley to laser tag with Harley's friends, but he supposes he could always cancel. It's not like any of Harley's friends actually cared about Leo. "Yeah. that's cool. See you then."

"See you then."

* * *

In the middle of class, for some reason, Leo gets called into the guidance office.

Due to his last name being Valdez, Leo's guidance counselor is fucking Hera. Due to a certain incident in Leo's third week of freshman year, Hera's made it her personal mission to really give Leo That Counselor Experience. More like Pain In The Ass.

Leo hasn't seen her since early junior year, where she wanted for him to take a more engineering based course with his schedule. Leo had completely ignored her constant bothering and instead signed up for Astronomy. While the class was actually a lot more work and a lot more boring than Leo expected, he was satisfied with the fact that he can do the exact opposite of what Hera wanted him to do.

"Leo Valdez."

"You."

Hera sighs, and taps something into her tablet. She's upgraded, Leo assesses. Her room has changed some too, now there were beanbag chairs in place of desks, and interesting little toys sprinkled around the tiny room. Hera's desk no longer looks like a tornado of papers, but instead a neatly designed home to paperweights and pictures of her big family. A desktop computer sits on the side of her desk, edged away from Leo's beanbag chair.

"How's your life at home, Leo?"

"Okay."

"Do you like your classes? I'm sure you know your way around the school by now, but is your new schedule giving you problems?"

"Yes. And no."

"Got any plans later? New friends?"

"Maybe."

Hera sighs again, except with a lot more aggression. She rubs her temples and glances at the time. There are only 10 minutes left until it's last period. Leo actually _likes_ math because it's easy, so he would like to leave very soon.

"Your sister called," Hera starts. "She was worried about you and how... _sad_ you might be."

"I have no idea what she's talking about," Leo folds his arms and sinks lower in his seat. The bright red chair willingly sucks him up. "She used to think that it was the end of the world when Bella and Jacob didn't end up together in _Twilight_."

"You think your sister is overreacting?"

" _Yes_ ," Leo stands up and grabs his book bag. "Now if I can just get a pass and _go-_ "

"Sit down. We're not done yet." Hera instructs in a voice that makes Leo sit back down really fast. "While I am not a psychiatrist-"

"I thought that was literally your job though."

"- _While I am not a psychiatrist_." Hera glares. "I must offer you as much help as I can offer. Based on what your sister called about, I have my suspicions."

"Me too," Leo rolls his eyes. "I suspect you like taking away my learning opportunities, which is _illegal_. So let me go, woman!"

"Leo," Hera looks through her desk. She spins her chair around, pulling out a clipboard. "Answer these questions, and you're free to go. Got it?"

"That's it?" Leo squints at her suspiciously. "No blood sacrifices or long lectures?"

Hera lets out a tired sigh and pulls her brown hair out of her tight bun. She's actually a fairly attractive woman. "You want to leave, right? Hurry up before you miss your class."

Leo scans over the test. It's just a bunch of questions, where you bubble in Not At All, Rarely, Sometimes, Often, or Most of The Time.

Leo glances at Hera, who is ignoring him in the midst of her own paperwork. He groans loud enough for her to hear it, and maybe make her regret this decision, but when she doesn't move he gets back to the paper.

Most of the questions are pretty easy and self-explanatory.

 _I can't concentrate or focus_. Ha. He puts down a solid and dark dot for Most of The Time. With a second thought, Leo scribbles something about his ADHD.

 _I feel dull, numb, or detached_. That's a tough one. Sometimes when he thinks about JasonPiper, and how he feels about them, Leo feels like shit. He settles with a Sometimes.

 _I have self-harmed_. A Not At All. Leo will never understand why people self-harm. Why go through all that trouble if you're just going to kill yourself?

 _I feel tired; have no energy_. Leo has _always_ felt tired. Not because of lack of sleep (although his lack of sleep has made him choose a Most Of The Time) but just _tired_. It started since he was young, maybe around the time his mom died. He's just been tired for a long time.

Most of the things he bubbles in are Sometimes, or Often. There's a few Rarely's and Most of the Time's sprinkled in but that's about it.

 _Do any of the choices you chose:_

 _Interfere with work or school_. Often. He skips class sometimes, but that's about it. He ends up daydreaming about a better world a lot.

 _Affect my relationships with friends or family._ Most Of The Time? He's not really sure how to answer this.

At bottom of the page, there's a single question, that's not really apart of a group like the rest of the questions. It's singled out- alone and important.

 _I have had thoughts of suicide_. Leo puts Sometimes.

Hera takes the paper back with a smile. "Everything's going to be okay."

"Why is everyone saying that?" Leo rolls his eyes, lifting his bag onto his back. "Can I get a pass now?"

"Of course," Hera mumbles, reviewing Leo's answers. She frowns and scribbles something on a post-it. "Here. Have a good day, Leo. Tell your sister I saw you today."

"Yeah, yeah, you too." Leo shoots out the room and darting through the halls. He stops to catch his breath at a turn.

When he walks into his math class, the teacher quickly catches him up, and Leo manages to snag a seat next to Rachel since the chairs were moved around for group work (both Calypso and Annabeth have the seats next to them taken).

"You alright?" Rachel says, nibbling on her pencil's eraser. "Also did you get the answer for 23?"

"It's False." Leo puts his pencil down. "I think I'm okay, why?"

"Just asking. You came in late." Rachel flips a page in her packet. "Aw, nuts. Really shouldn't have left my calculator at home."

And as simple as that, the conversation is over. So why does Leo still have more to say?

* * *

 **a/n: it's been a while because i honest to god, just forgot to post lol. but now i realized why i dont love ffnet because it has the dumb editing and whatnot. apollo's contact is a little heart but it takes out the "less than" symbol because it probably just assumes it's html... so _dumb_ lol. anyway, i should be posting the next chapters next week, as per usual. sorry about the inconvenience!**


	17. a (2)

**a**

The week before Valentine's Day is the torturous stress that Leo is lucky not to be in, but has always wanted to indulge in. The holiday has always held a certain place in his heart, as there is nothing more interesting to see than people expressing their love for each other. Whether it was the candy hearts his mom used to buy him, or the friendly valentine's shared between him and his friends.

In addition to being the American day of love, the 14th of February is also Piper's _birthday_ , even as she tragically hates the holiday. Although Leo figures it's due in part to her never being able to celebrate with someone special.

Leo's life becomes a mass hub for confusion. For some reason, everyone keeps going to _him_ for ideas, even though Leo's the worst person on Earth to ask for any of them.

Piper calls.

"Do you think Jason likes homemade chocolates or store bought?"

Leo flips a page in his textbook. "Why would I know?"

"'Cause you know him best." Piper huffs. "So what should I do?"

"I don't know. I'm doing homework."

"Can't you pause for like, 5 minutes?"

"I mean, it's kinda big homework… I have a test tomorrow."

"Alright, alright, answer the question and I'll hang up."

Leo thinks about what he would give Jason Grace if Jason was his Valentine. Not those big red things with lace and cursive and roses- the two would laugh about how cliche it is and throw chocolates at birds. Leo would get a plain red box and make Jason chocolate chip cookies instead because Jason has a bit of a sweet tooth that he tries to hide. He likes the soft cookies. "Homemade. Make him some cookies or brownies, or something. Don't do any huge gestures like giant hearts."

Piper lets out a sigh of relief. "You're the best, Leo. See you later, okay?"

"Mhm. Kiss him real good for me."

"Leo!"

It's such a surreal experience when even Leo's _other_ friends ask him questions. His conversation with Rachel is very frantic and done at the end of class.

"Okay, so there's this person I'm with, right?" Rachel explains, packing her pencils away. "We're kind of dating, but kind of not? They want to keep it on the down low if you get me."

"Is it Nico?" Leo sits on the desk, waiting for the bell to ring.

"No! That's really gross," Rachel laughs. "He's kind of really gay."

Leo's not sure if that's a joke or if Rachel's serious. If it's a joke, then it makes Leo want to scream. If it's not…

"-Anyway, they don't want anything flashy, but I want to show them I really love them." Rachel continues. "But I know nothing about Valentine's Day. Never really celebrated until last year."

"Try some chocolates." Leo bolts up when the bell rings. "Or, maybe a ring, or something."

"Jewelry," Rachel mumbles. "I don't think they would eat the chocolates, but jewelry could definitely work. Thanks, Leo!"

"No problem."

When Calypso and Travis ask him about Valentine's Day, Leo knows the world is playing a giant comical joke on him. Why would so many people ask the most helpless guy for advice? It's cruel, and Leo doesn't think everyone realizes that.

"So, what are you doing for Valentine's Day?" Travis leans on his fist. "Psst, Leo. _Leo_. Leo."

Leo tips back in his chair, folding his arms behind his head. "I don't know. I might just go to the arcade or work on my project for Robotics. Everyone else seems to have been bitten."

"Bitten?" Calypso turns to pay attention. Leo squints at the board and hopes there's someone else in this class who might be paying attention. Leo spots Clovis- he's asleep, as per usual.

"By the love bug." Leo waggles his eyebrows. He sighs. "It's so stupid."

"Yeah." Travis agrees, nodding his head so fast that Leo's surprised his head doesn't fly off his neck. "Let's do something to rebel against the holiday. You wanna come over and watch action movies? Even better, I have all the Law and Order episodes."

"That's fucking insane. There's like," Leo pauses. "15 seasons."

"18. And _yeah_." Travis grins. "You wanna come over?"

"Hmm, maybe." Leo rolls his pencil back and forth against the desk. "I think there's one person who might want to actually _do_ something with me."

"Who?" Travis immediately presses.

Leo snorts. "It's no one you know. He doesn't even go here."

"Hmm," Leo almost forgot that Calypso was listening. She looks Leo over. "Huh."

"Huh? What's huh? Why are you huh-ing?"

"No, it's nothing." Calypso shrugs, turning back to the teacher's slideshow. "I just assumed something and you confirmed it."

"Confirmed what?" Leo stresses. "What did I do?"

"Don't worry about it," Calypso says. "It's cool."

Leo looks to Travis, who looks as confused as he is. "I hate you, sometimes."

"I know." Calypso laughs.

* * *

Apollo grins when he sees Leo walk into the music store. "Now, why are you in my place today?"

"Just wondering why it looks like Cupid threw up in here." Leo gestures to the red and pink streamers, and hearts dangling from the ceiling. "You doing something special for the big day?"

"I don't know," Apollo leans against the counter. He looks very dumb in his green polo shirt, with the store's logo printed on the left side of his chest. "Got any plans?"

Leo pretends to think. "Hmm, my schedule is pretty filled. It'll have to be something really tempting to make me want to clear it. Are you _asking_ to be my Valentine? My, oh my, but this is only our third date."

"Do you want me to ask?" Apollo counteracts.

"I don't know," Leo says earnestly. He not so earnestly says: "I already have lines of people wanting to be my Valentine back at school…"

"Do you now?" Apollo presses his lips firmly. "Let me hear the list."

"Oh you _know_ ," Leo shrugs. "Just people. We'll see."

Apollo tilts his head. "I doubt any of them has a car to drive you anywhere."

Leo looks over his short list of Valentines. His options are simple:

1\. Apollo: pro- can drive; con- ?

2\. The Couch: pro- comfortable; con- can't drive

Hmm. Yep, it's decided.

"Well, _maybe_ my schedule has opened up. It's in two weeks, right? Friday?"

"Can't do Friday." Apollo reminds Leo.

Leo's heart does this flopping thing. He gapes. "You can't do _Valentine's_ Day?"

Apollo looks really sorry. "It's just this thing I do-"

"Can you tell me the thing?"

Apollo bites his lip. "I'm not sure you want to know."

"Oh my God." Leo rubs his face. "I think you're catfishing me. Holy fuck."

"Oh my God, _no_." Apollo chuckles and grabs Leo's hands. "Stop doing that, you'll get more acne."

"You have a wife, don't you?" Leo groans. "A wife, three kids, and a fucking poodle. And they all live in California, cause they think you're on a business trip for a few months. Is that why you're so tan even though it's winter? From your beach house in Cali?"

"Leo," Apollo laughs really hard. "I can tell you that I do not have a wife, three kids, and a fucking poodle. Especially not living in California. I've only been there once for a vacation."

"So what do you do on Fridays that's so important?"

"It's complicated." Apollo scratches his eyebrow. "How about I take you to get sushi with me, instead?"

"You can't just bribe me with food."

"I'll let you get the bubble tea."

Damn. As much as Leo is interested in Apollo's other life, the thought of food might almost always tempt him. Leo's going to bring up the conversation later on.

Because this year might be Leo's first Valentine's Day actually _with_ someone. Wife and three kids, be damned.

* * *

Piper has on funky looking colorful leggings with pieces of bacon and eggs on them. They're a bright blue, contrasting with her white ski jacket and boots.

"Happy Valentine's Day," Piper pulls Leo into a hug. "I wish you could be my Valentine- you're so easy to shop for. Just get you video games, and I'll be good."

Leo hasn't touched any video games in months, but he doesn't tell Piper that. He instead returns the hug and slips her a small box of chocolates and a wrapped present.

"Happy Pukeday," Leo mimes sticking a finger down his throat. "Oh, and Valentine's Day, I guess- _ow_ , kidding. Happy birthday, man."

Piper retracts back her fist and graciously accepts the gifts. "I can't believe I'm 18 now. I don't even feel a difference, but I'm no longer a minor."

"Yeah," Leo sticks his hands back in his pocket, "I mean, not _yeah_ , cause I'm still a minor but I can imagine that. Age of consent and all."

"Age of consent…" Piper trails off. She turns to Leo, gifts under her arm. "You've got to turn 18 soon. Then we can all do something. Like vote, I guess."

"Yeah, let's vote when there's no election this year. That'll be fun."

"Whatever. There's always an election to get involved in." Piper holds the box of chocolates in front of her. "Shit. I meant to pick out something for you, but I was so worried about _Jason_ -"

"It's fine," Leo says even though it's really not and it kind of hurts. He shouldn't have been surprised that Piper forgot about him. Even though it's been tradition to exchange Valentines to each other. "You can buy me lunch on Monday. It'll be the 'probably-not-chicken' chicken nuggets with soggy fries."

Piper makes a face. "Deal. Very gross school lunch, but deal."

Leo glances at his phone. In addition to checking the time, he's become more interested in any unseen phone messages, now that they're more likely to occur. "Where the hell is Jason? He knows where the park is."

"I don't know." The two of them are standing by the jungle gym, pulling on their hats and messing with zipped up coats. The monkey bars are sitting alone to the side, considering there are no kids out in the cold in this area. Most of them would be by the hills or by the lake, rolling in dirty snow or running across the dangerous ice.

The monkey bars hold fond memories, but Leo's too tall now. He can try extending his arms and lifting his legs but to a certain point, his knees hit the ground. There used to be a time when he _wanted_ to be tall enough to just walk across. Now it just makes Leo depressed.

The three of them had promised to meet up after school to exchange gifts, as per usual, but it seems like Jason has other things to do.

"-open them." Leo filters back to Piper to see her ripping through wrapping paper. Leo's attempt at wrapping crumbles to the ground in red strips, revealing a regular box in its place. Piper opens the cardboard box, and coos when she pulls out what might be a million bracelets. They're all the silly kind: jelly bracelets with glitter, slap bracelets, wristbands with band names, ones with dumb sayings. "Oh my god, Leo. Where'd you find all this?"

"Vending machines. Thrift shops. Arcade winnings." Leo shrugs. "It's fine if you don't want them."

"No I do, I love them." Piper beams, pulling as many bracelets onto her wrist as she can. "They're hella cute- what's this one?"

Piper pulls out the bracelet Leo purposely put at the bottom. It's a plain silver ring, with a _P_ charm attached to it and tiny swirls of engravings carved into the sides. When Piper slides it on, it shines under the sunlight. "This looks really expensive. You didn't have to buy me this."

"I didn't."

"Holy fuck, you _stole_ this? Leo!"

"Heh, bet you know a lot about stealing- ow. Stop hitting me, or I'll file child abuse." Leo rubs his arm. Piper doesn't appreciate the reference to her pre-pubescent and shifty attitude that used to get her in trouble so often. "I made it. It's no big deal."

He says this as if he hadn't spent a full three days after school staring through a school microscope to see what he was carving. They're just feather's dancing around the band because Leo knows Piper happens to like those.

"Jesus Christ, Leo, are you a wizard? It's really pretty." Piper kisses his cheek. "Jeez, you have no idea how great you are sometimes."

"Thanks. I think I see Jason coming here- oh." Leo's heart skips only a tiny bit when he sees Jason jogging, arms of teddy bear and chocolates, and a heart-shaped balloon trailing behind.

"Hey guys," Jason breathes. "Happy Valentine's Day, and happy birthday."

"You came," Piper steps closer, hooking her arms around Jason's neck.

"Of course," Jason mumbles. "Tradition, right?"

Leo looks down and then crouches to pick up the shredded wrapping paper Piper had left. He doesn't listen much to them. For a minute, he wants to pop the balloon, or at the very least, untie the string so he could let it fly away.

"Yo, Leo." Leo looks up, only to catch a small Valentine's box of chocolates. Jason grins down at Leo with his blue eyes shining. Leo could practically feel the world slow. The mantra in his mind is unforgiving: ItstraditionItstraditionItstradition. And then Jason turns back to Piper.

Leo stands up. He digs through his own pockets for his Valentine for Jason. It's just a heart-shaped box of jelly beans, but only the gross flavors that Jason happens to love, like Buttered Popcorn, Juicy Pear, and Orange Sherbert. It's the most disgusting mix of about ten flavors, but Jason loves them, so Leo handpicked these out of a million regular boxes.

"Here, man." Leo passes the box to Jason. "I should probably go now. Valentine's day is for you two."

"Stay for Piper's birthday," Jason urges.

Piper smiles, "Yeah, Leo. Stay with us for my birthday. The big one- eight."

Leo thinks about Travis' invitation. He could watch Law and Order right now. While Leo would've liked to be with Apollo and his stupidly funny pick up lines and bad jokes, he is fine with just being away from this. Something about seeing Jason and Piper right now makes Leo feel oddly crowded. Even though there are only three people, Leo feels claustrophobic.

"I've got a date." Leo blurts. "So I've got somewhere to be."

"Leo! Why didn't you say anything?" Piper grabs Leo's jacket. "Holy crap, who is she? That's so good for you."

Jason gently pries Piper's fingers off. Now all three of them are so close to each other, breathing in each other's air and relishing in each other's energy and aura. Leo doesn't like it very much. "Sorry, Leo. It's just- you haven't dated anyone in years, so…"

Leo's face burns, and he looks away. It's not his fault that he hasn't dated anyone. Sure, Leo has crushes from time to time (there's something fundamentally different from a crush and what Leo has for Jason). Except, no one ever looks his way. Leo just can't _help_ repelling people away. Not that either Jason or Piper would know anything about _that_.

But now, Leo has Apollo. He actually _like_ likes him. It's such a new feeling that Leo wants to keep to himself. He wants to take Apollo's crush and _eat_ it, if only to absorb all that love into his cells.

"We're happy you found someone," Piper says. "But we _will_ talk about this later. Got it, buddy?"

"Got it."

Jason slaps a hand on Leo's back. "Ha, and for a second, I was a bit worried about you."

"Worried about me?" Leo raises an eyebrow.

Jason shakes his head, dismissing it. "Nah, don't worry about it, Leo. You should go on this magical date you have."

Leo is imagining watching Law and Order in his ugly long socks and stained t-shirt next to Travis. Eating popcorn and pizza rolls. Maybe Connor might slip in too, to catch an episode or so. It's perfect.

He snorts. "Yeah, sure. Magical."

* * *

The Stolls live in a cute house. Leo steps on the patio and rings the doorbell.

It's Connor who opens the door. He has on a big t-shirt and boxers peeking out from below. Leo's never noticed it before but Connor has really skinny legs. Like two twigs with knobby knees.

"Oh," Connor says bluntly. "You're not the mailman."

"No." Leo laughs. "Is your brother home?"

"Which one? Believe it or not, Travis isn't my only brother." Connor lets Leo in, eyeing the box of chocolates in his hand and the sweat on Leo's forehead. "He's such an- _ugh_ sometimes."

"Uh, Travis."

"Yeah. Upstairs in the attic. Is that for him?" Connor nods towards the chocolates. "Also shoes off over there."

Leo takes off his shoes. "No, it's just from a friend. But I brought both Cheetos and Doritos. Didn't know which one he liked more." Leo raises the black bag in his other hand.

"You stink. Did you run here or something? Did you run from Canada?" Connor's nose crinkles. Leo's following him around the house and into the kitchen. There's a note on the fridge- one telling Connor and Travis that there are leftovers in the fridge. Connor slams the freezer door, taking out a gallon of ice cream. "Sorry, my parents are out, having a date or robbing a bank. Who knows at this point. Who cares at this point."

"Are you okay?" Leo's noticing that Connor is acting a bit weird. Very forceful and annoyed. "You look kinda irritated. Is this a bad time?"

"I'm not," Connor pauses his angry scooping. "You like French Vanilla or Vanilla Bean?"

"Is there a difference?"

" _Yes_." Connor sighs. He puts down his spoon and rubs his temples. "I'll just give you both, and let you figure it out. Travis is upstairs, being a dick."

"Yeah, okay." Leo tries not to be awkward, as he goes through the hallway, and up the stairs. Along the staircase are pictures of little tiny Stolls. They have an older brother- one with blond hair but the same mischievous blue eyes. He has a scar that might've appeared when he was a pre-teen according to the pictures.

The attic is home to what must be the shared living quarters of Connor and Travis Stoll. Two twin sized beds pushed on opposite sides of the space, with different personalities clashing. The left side is definitely cleaner, with tidy books stacked and millions of CDs in piles. There's an acoustic guitar squared off by the side of a cleared desk.

The right side of the room has glow stars on the slanted roof, with some hanging from string, and clothes thrown everywhere. There are comic books in places there shouldn't be, and a desk covered in messy papers and colorful rocks. There are a few pictures taped in between constellations.

Travis sits in the middle of the floor, huddled in blankets as he watches TV. Leo can't see the screen because the stairs are directly behind the TV, but based on the dialogue it's _Sharknado 2_.

"Dude," Leo says.

Travis doesn't even look up. "Go away, Connor."

"So no LAO, huh?" Leo shrugs. "Guess I came all this way for nothing."

"Leo?" Travis' head shoots up. The blanket falls from his head, making brown hair stick up wildly. "Shit, sorry, thought you were Connor. Here, you can sit here if you want."

Leo sits on the cold floor and takes off his jacket. "Cozy. Nice room."

"Yeah, me and Con's share it." Travis rolls his eyes. "Really wish we didn't sometimes."

"Are you guys arguing? Is that why he's acting all weird."

"We always argue. And he's always weird. And stupid." Travis tugs on his blanket, hooking it over his head and around his neck again. He's now only a blob of navy blue, and a face with odd lighting cast over it from the movie.

Leo's not stupid, the two are definitely fighting. He can proudly say that he doesn't get into arguments with his siblings much, and if he does, the fights are resolved in an hour. Leo just has that kind of connection with his brothers and sister.

"Well, whatever you two are fighting about will pass over. Which do you like more, Cheetos or Doritos?"

"I don't care." Travis then pouts. "You have a younger brother, right? Isn't he the _worst_?"

"Harley's pretty cool. He keeps eating peanut butter even though he's allergic. The doctor doesn't know what the heck is wrong with him." Leo says. Harley's his brother. While they annoy the crap out of each other, it's just something they _do_.

"Oh," Travis lets out a heavy sigh. "Hey guess what? I heard that Rachel got a haircut. But it's total bullshit because I was just on her story."

Story. Snapchat story. Leo doesn't have any social media except for an abandoned Facebook that Piper suggested for him to make years ago.

"Where'd you hear that?" Leo doubts Travis has even left the room since school ended.

"Nico. He's _such_ a gossip." Travis fumbles with the remote. "You up for hours of fun, now? Turns out my mom also has all the seasons for Law & Order SVU. You might have to sleep over for months if we're ever going to make it through it all."

Leo giggles and lays on his stomach. "I think I'll take my chances.

* * *

His phone is vibrating at 3 AM in the morning. Leo sits up, wiping the crusts out of his eyes. He's still with the Stolls.

On one of the beds, Leo can only assume is Connor sleeping away peacefully. Travis is lying right next to Leo, with his arms tangled up around Leo's waist. Travis drools.

 **PIPER [3:48]:** Leo

 **PIPER [3:48]:** We gotta talk asap

 **PIPER [3:49]:** Guess what I just figured out?

 **PIPER [3:49]:** I know everything

Leo shivers, as he sits on Piper's bed. Her room is oddly cold, but it doesn't keep his palms from being any less clammy. Leo's mind is racing with thoughts. The messages he had last night ( _I know everything_ ) had been on the top of his mind. What does Piper know?

Piper bursts into the room with a grin. "Check it out." She shoves a picture in his face.

"It's the one we saw in Drew's folder." A picture of Aphrodite, Drew, and an unknown girl and older man. "Why is this in my face?"

"It's what I texted you about!" Piper then frowns. "At least one of the things. We've got a lot to talk about."

"Oh." Leo's not sure what that means. He doesn't feel any less nervous. "So about the picture…?"

"Yes!" Piper points to the girl and man. "That's my uncle, and that was my cousin- er, Silena."

" _Was_?"

Piper nods. "Yeah, she died. It was in the news. Whole Romeo and Juliet scandal, you know?"

"No."

"Alright, so she had this boyfriend. I think his name was Charlie-"

"Beckendorf?" Leo's eyebrows furrowed. It's a name that the Robotics club praised but didn't talk about much.

"How'd you know that?" Piper raises an eyebrow. "Anyway, they were in love. Like the love people _dream_ about. Except, she was mixed up in some really bad stuff. Like drugs or something. And then Charlie goes missing? _Yeah_."

"Why wouldn't we remember this?" Leo says quizzically. "It couldn't have been too long ago."

"It was like ten years ago, but my family had taken her off the family tree. It's really sad because they hadn't even lived to graduate."

"How'd she die, though?"

"Charlie went missing, and she went looking for him. They were never found again."

Leo thinks through the story. "Sounds like they eloped and ran away."

"No," Piper twitches. "They were definitely found again."

"You just said they weren't. You literally just said that they weren't found again."

"I told the story wrong! I _meant_ to say, was that they were never found again, _alive_."

"I still think they eloped."

"Were you even listening?" Piper sits on the bed. "They were found in Charlie's basement, wearing rings and with their hands holding each other. They both swallowed a lot of pills. Or maybe it was drain cleaner?"

"So… they eloped," Leo says plainly. "Before they did the whole double suicide."

"Yes, Leo." Piper sighs into her pillow. "They eloped."

"Yeah, I know. That's what I said."

Piper lets out a muffled scream into her pillow. She flops on her back. "Do you even care?"

"Not really," Leo figures that came out wrong so he tries to clarify. "I mean, Charlie is a _legend_ to some of the people that I know. He was really well-liked. I'd rather not let some story spoil that for my mental image of him."

"I see," Piper says, but Leo seriously doubts it. Piper then perks up and grins at Leo. "Hey, why didn't you tell me?"

"Tell you…?" Leo trails off. He figures it must be something good if Piper's so happy. But Leo hasn't done anything good for a long time, so he can't possibly understand what she's going on about. "What didn't I tell you?"

"About your date, yesterday! Who is she? Have I met her? Is she nice?" Piper starts shooting off questions at a speed that Leo can't match. "What's she like? Does she live nearby? How old is she? When'd you two start dating-"

"Whoa." Leo raises his hands up. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Yesterday you said you had a date, right? A Valentine?"

"I dunno. Did I?"

"You totally did. You've got to tell me stuff, y'know?" Piper pokes Leo. "How else are we supposed to help each other?"

Leo figures nothing that can go wrong with explaining he has a friend who he watched a show with. He says this without giving too much information. Best friend or not, Leo still wants to keep his different lives separate.

"Hmm," Piper taps her chin. "Not exactly what I was hoping for. But _do_ you have a girlfriend? A girl you like?"

At that very moment, his phone vibrates. Piper eyes his pocket with interest. Leo only glances at the name. 3. It's Apollo. Leo wants to laugh at the chances of getting a message after those exact words. It's some kind of messed up sign from the heavens.

 **3 [17:46]:** work is so boring! come visit me loser ;P  
 **3 [17:46]:** leoster*! we should destroy auto correct!

Leoster. It looks a lot more stupid than it sounds. Leo snorts, and when he looks up, he realizes his mistake.

"Who are you texting?" Piper tries to peer at Leo's tiny screen. Leo snaps the phone close. "Is that your girlfriend?"

"One, I don't have a girlfriend. And it's no one, stop being weird."

"Didn't seem like no one," Piper narrows her eyes. "You're not doing drugs or anything? Nothing bad?"

"Oh _God_ no." Leo points to his face. "You think someone _this_ cute would be doing something bad?"

"Is it Jason?" Piper reaches for her own phone sitting on the other side of the bed. "He hasn't texted me back."

"Uh, yes?"

"Oh," Piper makes a face. "So you seriously aren't into anyone? No girlfriend or anything?"

"No." Leo puts his phone down. "Who even needs that? In a few months, we're leaving for college anyway."

Piper gasps and stares at Leo, horrified. "Who are you and what have you done to my best friend? You are acting very unLeo right now, and it's making me nervous."

"I _always_ make girls nervous," Leo makes a vulgar gesture with his tongue and his two fingers parted in a v-shape.

"So nervous they want to run away," Piper leans closer.

Ha. This is good. It's normal banter that Leo can handle. "Run away with _hearts in their eyes_."

"More like their own _fingers_ in their eyes." Piper leans even _closer_. Her shoulder is lightly brushing against his shoulder. Leo is about to move aside when Piper makes a fast grab for his phone. She steals it, and scans through the messages greedily, running to her door to escape.

It's a good thing that Leo actually participates in cross country. He makes it across the room faster than Piper can and blocks the door. "What the _fuck_ , Piper?"

"Who's the heart contact?" Piper squints at Leo. Leo snatches his phone back and holds it close to his chest. His heart's beating fast because there's no way he can deal with Piper's nosiness and invasion of his private life.

"That was so uncalled for." Leo folds his arms. "You really didn't have to do that."

"Sorry," Piper looks anywhere but Leo. Her hand is nervously pulling on her hair, and Leo knows from experience that if she continues then Piper would pull it out. "I was just really interested in getting to know you some more. You never tell me anything, and I _knew_ that you weren't talking to Jason."

Leo grabs her hand before it could pull out her hair. "You _do_ know me. Jeez, Piper, can you chill out?"

"No, I _don't_ ," Piper's eyes finally fall on Leo. "Don't you dare say I do, because I _don't_. You've changed and you won't tell me anything anymore."

"I _do._ "

"No, you don't!" Piper pulls her hand away, as her voice gets higher. "I don't even know half of those contacts! I don't understand why you're never around."

"Piper…" Leo's throat constricts.

" _No!_ You can't just pretend this is nothing!" Piper's yanking at her hair again. "How are we supposed to help each other _if we can't tell each other anything?_ "

"Piper, calm down. Stop it." Leo's trying to make his own body calm down, but it won't because he's used to arguing with Jason (not really), but he's not used to arguing with Piper. It's a huge feeling of fear because what if this is the day Piper says, " _Screw you, Leo Valdez_ " and never talks to him again? What if this is what makes Piper turn away from him?

(And the heaping fear crawling in his throat is magnified when Leo understands that if Piper leaves then Jason is gone too and Leo is nothing without them.)

"I just want us to be like how we used to be. You're so _distant_ , and it's not fair!" Piper's voice cracks. "It's not fair to _me_ , it's not fair to _Jason_ , and it's not fair to the _three of us!_ "

"I-"

"No, Leo. We used to be fucking _close_ ," Piper makes a triangle with her frantic fingers. "Like _equals_ and it was _perfect_."

The words slam into him like a bullet. They linger in his mind because there's something _incomprehensibly_ _wrong_ about that statement. Leo just can't put his finger on it, because something about that bugs him- maybe has _always_ bugged him- but coming into the light, Leo can't seem to put the feelings to thought.

Piper lets out a frustrated whine, and before she can fall to the floor, Leo catches her and they sink to the ground softly. He hugs her close because that's what he's always done. She's hurting, and he's always hurting, so maybe they can hurt together.

It doesn't change anything, as Piper's shoulders heave. "I don't want to be Jason and Piper. I want Jason and Piper and Leo. Is that selfish?"

Jason and Piper and Leo. JasonPiperLeo. JasonPiperLeoJasonPiperLeoJasonPiperLeoJasonPiperLeoJasonPiperJasonPiperJasonPiperJasonPiperJasonPiper.

"Maybe," Leo says truthfully. He doesn't think it's selfish, because part of him wants a bit of the old JasonPiperLeo formation too. Back before Jason and Piper isolated themselves. Or was it him isolating himself? Leo wants to go back to being stupid and dumb and fooling around in his junior year. If this is adulthood, he doesn't want it. If this is his life, he doesn't want it.

Yet, there are so many new things that are in Leo's life now. So many things that he's not sure he could have if everything went back the way it was.

Yes, Piper, you're pretty fucking selfish, but so is _everyone_.

"I need to take a walk," Piper mumbles into Leo's shirt. "Need to clear my head. This is _not_ how I thought this day would go."

"Okay," Leo lets her go. She doesn't look at him when she pulls on her shoes and jacket.

Leo goes home after two hours, and there's still no sign of Piper.

* * *

"Alright, now catch this one." Apollo throws a jellybean in the air.

Leo tilts his head back and swerves around to catch it in his mouth. "Cherry."

"Wrong, fruit punch." Apollo laughs and grips his sides.

They're in Apollo's apartment, which is a lot nicer than Leo had first imagined. Leo's getting a bit good at finding his way through the studio apartment, as he's beginning to recognize which cupboards hold what, or which drawers hold what. The apartment isn't very spacious, due to the endless of instruments that Apollo has lying around: a guitar, violin, ukulele, trumpet, saxophone, keyboard, and even a small harmonica on the coffee table.

"We should probably clean up," Leo gestures to the tiny candies that he hadn't caught in his mouth.

Apollo leans back on the couch. "It's not my fault you didn't catch them."

"You suck," Leo crawls around to pick up the jellybeans. "There's so many of them!"

"Nah," Leo hears the sound of chewing. "I like my view from here."

Leo turns his head and blows a raspberry at him. Apollo does this kind of dancing thing with his eyebrows. It's the wave but with _eyebrows_. It's really cool, and Leo has to learn it somehow.

"Do you know how to play Chess?" Apollo asks after Leo's done picking up the pieces.

"Yeah," Leo goes towards the fridge to pull out something to eat. He settles with the leftover spaghetti from the other day. "Jake taught me, and he was really good."

"Well, I had my _sister_ teach me. And she was good, but we practically think the same. Not fun, but the games went on for _hours_." Apollo brags from near one of his bookshelves. He comes back to the coffee table in the main area and is surprised to see Leo heating up two plates of spaghetti.

"What? I figured you were hungry too. I'll eat it if you want." They both sit on the floor, near the corner of the coffee table.

Apollo shakes his head. "No, that's not it. Let's just play."

"Mmm," Leo moves a pawn. "I'm gonna kick your ass though, so you should give up now."

"I'd like to see you try." Apollo pokes a meatball. "Especially when I already took one of your knights."

"Uh, I tricked you. See, now I've got your rook."

"Huh."

It's a well-matched game. Both of them are lousy at chess, despite all their bragging, but they're frustratingly _equally_ lousy. They end up concentrating more on the game, than the passing of time or the sun falling and night taking over.

"Hey, it's your turn," Leo says after staring at the board for some time. He's well aware of the current stalemate the two were in. Leo looks up, to find Apollo staring at him. "Jeez, Apollo, pay attention to the game, will you?"

"Sorry," Apollo's embarrassed to get caught. He moves a piece. "Ha, took your _other_ knight."

Five minutes later, Leo catches Apollo staring at him again. "Dude. Why do you keep looking at me? Is there something on my face?"

"No, you're just really pretty." Apollo's still staring. " _Really_ pretty."

" _What_?"

Apollo groans, and thumps his head on the table. The pieces jump, and Apollo groans again. "Sorry. I didn't say that. Pretend I didn't say that."

"No, it's fine," Leo touches his face. "I mean it's _not_ because you can't just call a guy _pretty_. Besides I'm not pretty."

Apollo lifts his head up. "But you _are_. You have a really nice face, and it's structured all pretty and junk. And you have brown eyes."

"Lots of people have brown eyes," Leo says awkwardly. He's really touched, and there's that feeling stirring in his stomach again. But this isn't Jason so why would it appear? "It's statistically the most common color."

"Yeah," Apollo sighs. "But brown eyes are _pretty_. Yours are really brown, like dark brown? But they're beautiful."

"Oh my God," Leo's the one embarrassed now. "Stop it."

"And you have this really cute thing going on with your nose because it scrunches up when something is really funny or disgusting-"

" _Apollo_ ," Leo covers his face because he really doesn't want the other male to talk about him like this. It's _embarrassing_.

"There are these moles by your neck that I want to touch or lick-"

"That's so weird." Leo laughs but then stops because what if his nose actually _does_ do a weird little thing when he thinks something is funny.

"No, it's not." Apollo tries to defend his position. "They're _cute_ moles."

"They're _not_ ," Leo touches his neck. "You're so weird."

"No. _You're_ weird because you don't see what I see." Apollo puts his chin in his hand. "You're really pretty, and I want to kiss you a lot."

"You don't want to kiss me."

"I do."

Leo scratches his head. "I don't know…"

"Let me try. Just once?" Apollo thinks over his words, and then holds his arms in surrender and leans back. He shakes his head furiously. "I'm not trying to force you! I swear, if you don't feel anything, you can leave and never come back."

Leo swallows when Apollo leans over the table. He closes his eyes when he feels Apollo's breath getting closer.

It's just a quick peck that leaves Leo disappointed.

"Oh," Leo says when Apollo sits back down. "Do you want to... try that again? For, uh, research."

" _Yes_." Apollo leans forward again. This time, Leo leans forward too. For a second, the two just stare at each other.

Apollo smells like spaghetti sauce and cheap shampoo. Leo then closes his eyes and waits. Nothing happens.

Apollo sniggers loudly, and Leo opens his eyes. Is he stupid? Did Leo just fall for a prank?

"Your- your _shirt_." Apollo's laughing so hard that he jerks back, and falls to the floor.

Leo moves away from the table, to reveal that he was leaning onto his dirty plate. Spaghetti sauce stains most of Leo's t-shirt. Leo tries to not be extremely disappointed _again_.

"Oh."

Apollo picks himself up and waddles on his knees towards Leo. "Sorry," Apollo snickers. "I'm just really nervous. Let me try again."

And he leans in and presses his smooth lips against Leo's chapped ones. Leo doesn't find it very romantic at all, but he does feel like he's on a rollercoaster and is mentally screaming " _WHEEEEEEEE!"_. Apollo's hand find its way onto Leo's waist.

It's not like in books where they describe tasting some cute little _cinnamon_ or _apples_. Leo does, however, taste cilantro from the food, and maybe a bit of magic. His stomach bubbles like soda, and Leo's fits his fingers through Apollo's curly hair.

"Mmh," Leo breaks away. He lets out a shaky breath. "I think you bit my lip."

"Did not," Apollo huffs.

"Can we try again? Just cause I want to see if you'll bite my lip again. Like maybe it's a thing you do-"

Apollo interrupts him with a laugh and spaghetti breath. "Of course. For research?"

"For research."

Leo doesn't find Apollo very romantic sometimes, but _shit_ this is something Leo can fall in love with.


	18. v (2)

**v**

When Leo opens the door, Drew is standing outside his house. She looks very cold and annoyed.

"Why are you here?" Leo blocks the doorway with his body. In her boots, Drew is an inch taller than Leo.

"I left my keys in my house. Can I just stay here for a few hours?"

Leo doesn't budge. "Call Piper. Or your mom."

"I _did_." Drew looks insulted. "Piper is going to the basketball game afterward to see her boy toy. And my mom is at work."

"Oh," Leo opens the door. "I guess you can hang."

"Gee, thanks." Drew rolls her eyes, unzipping her jacket. She observes the living room and the clutter on the table. The television is paused on a scene from _Ben 10_. The good one- where they're teenagers and there's some kid named Kevin, and Gwen is a badass. "Why is it so dark in here?"

"Uh, I'm doing homework. You any good at English?"

"No."

"Oh." Leo goes back to his homework. Drew hesitantly sits next to him, and pulls out her phone. Drew crosses her legs, one over the other, making Leo's eyes draw to the creases in her tight jeans. Mmm. He presses play and continues his homework.

"I'm gonna get something to eat. Want anything?" Leo says after a while. He looks up to see Drew actively watching the cartoon. When her eyes trail from the screen and to Leo's face, her face flushes.

"What a dumb show." Drew spits out, as she follows him to the kitchen.

"I like it."

"Of course _you_ do." Drew watches as Leo fumbles his way around the counter. He's assembling a massive sandwich, so far stacked with three different types of meat and two different kinds of cheese. It's placed on wheat bread because Leo is healthy sometimes and because Nyssa doesn't buy anything else. "Do you have any grapes?"

"No."

"Apples?"

"No."

" _Oranges_?"

"No. We have chocolate covered raisins though."

Drew makes an annoyed click with her tongue. "Why is your family so unhealthy, Valdez?"

"Why don't you eat normal food?" Leo shoots back. He goes to the fridge and slaps out a bag of apples and a bag of tangerines on the counter. "I lied. Nyssa makes Harley lunch, and he has to eat healthy every now and then."

"Thanks," Drew looks between the two fruits, like it's the hardest decision of her life. Leo ignores her and continues building his sandwich up. He might as well get something for Harley to eat, though Leo hasn't seen the kid since Harley got home from school.

"Jesus, lady, just pick one. Or both, I don't care." Leo rolls his eyes after Drew is still stuck on her decision. "Either way, you're starving yourself."

"Shut up." Drew starts peeling the tangerine. "I just like being healthy."

"I faintly remember there was a time, where you and me used to have donut eating contests." Leo used to think Drew was a lot cooler back then. She used to wear overalls and band-aids and her hair in pigtails. By middle school, the overalls were traded for skirts and blouses, but Drew was still fun to be with. Then by high school, Drew had discovered the wonders of makeup and boyfriends. She used to smile a lot more.

"I was stupid. You still are stupid." Drew gags when she catches Leo spurting mustard on his sandwich. "Are you really going to eat that?"

"Yeah, it's good." Leo smacks his other piece of bread down and takes a giant bite. "Very goof."

"I think I just barfed."

"Not all of us have such delicate appetites, Drew." Leo continues eating. He starts piling cookies on a plate for Harley. "When was the last time you've had a pizza?"

Drew ignores the question. "When was the last time you had a _salad_?"

"Last Tuesday with Ap- a friend. And you? Pizza?"

"... a few months. September."

Leo's jaw drops, and Drew makes a face when she sees the food still in his mouth. "How are you even alive? It's like, the end of February right now. No way, you're serious."

"It's not that big of a deal." Drew puts a tangerine slice in her mouth. "Pizza's not that amazing."

"You take that back right now. You have angered the pizza gods, and they won't spare you."

Drew shrugs.

Leo puts down his sandwich. "I will literally pick you up and lock you in with Harley. And he will explain the magic of his favorite food, as I order an extra-large Meat Lovers pizza with extra toppings."

"You wouldn't," Drew brandishes a tangerine slice like a knife, when she sees Leo step closer.

"But I _would_ ," Leo tiptoes closer.

"I'll scream Leo Valdez, I swear to God, I will _scream_."

"The neighbors would think we're watching a scary movie again," Leo smirks. "Oh wait. _You're_ my neighbor."

Leo grabs her by the waist. With every muscle in his body, he flips her over his weak shoulder. It's a good thing that Drew is light (scarily so) because a heavy thing on top of a frail Leo wouldn't do so good.

"Let me go!" Drew kicks wildly. But she's also laughing so Leo thinks he won't get in a lot of trouble for this. "I swear, Valdez, if you don't put me down right now-"

"-And we're going up the stairs now."

Drew shrieks and thumps her hands against his back. It feels like stinging open palm slaps.

"Whoa," Leo catches himself before the two of them go tumbling down the stairs. "Calm down, before I drop you."

Leo puts her down at the top of the stairs. For a second it's really quiet, as Leo stares at Drew's red face and messy hair. Drew's only dimple, in her right cheek, is showing.

Then Drew's face scrunches up. "Is your brother even here? Harley normally makes a lot of noise."

"Yeah, I think so." Leo glances down the empty hallway. "You want to go and check?"

They tiptoe together until they arrive at Harley's door. Drew uses delicate hands to open the door without so much as a creak. From the sound of the water going, Harley's in the bathroom.

Drew slides down against the wall. "At least he hasn't gone missing."

"I guess," Leo follows her actions and sits on the floor. Drew's body shakes, and for a second Leo thinks that she's crying. Drew looks up, and Leo can tell that the girl was _laughing_.

"Were you really going to lock me up in there and order a pizza?"

"I mean, I was gonna order a pizza, cause I do have to eat for dinner."

Drew tilts her head back against the wall. She takes out her ponytail and a waterfall of black hair drops. "I haven't had a pizza in forever."

"Yeah me too. It's been a week, I've been deprived."

"You're a pig sometimes."

"Can't help it if I like food and you don't."

Drew closes her eyes. "I don't _not_ like food. Food's great."

Leo picks at lint on his shirt. "I _know_. I've been eating a lot. I should probably stop soon."

"Mm. I wish I could eat a lot." Drew turns her face away. "You're really skinny."

"So are you."

"Thanks."

"Is this what it's all about? You've got bulimia or something?" Leo averts his eyes. "I kind of thought that was made up."

Drew jerks her head sharply. "I don't have an eating disorder, you dumbass. And it's not ' _made up_.'"

"Sure, sure, whatever you say," Leo reassures her. "You used to be bigger before, though. You're a swizzle stick now."

"Fatter? I know."

"No, not _fatter_. Just bigger." Leo shrugs with one shoulder. "I mean, I can't say much since I'm an actual stick walking around, but you were definitely bigger? But still healthy? You looked great. I don't see why you had to change."

Drew bites her lip. "Can you-"

"Oh, shit." Leo interrupts, looking through the doorway again. "What's he doing?"

Drew looks disgruntled, but peers through the door too. She giggles softly. "Your brother has about as much skill as _you_ do with ladies."

On the other side of the door, Harley is kissing someone. Not exactly _someone_ and not exactly _kissing_. The kid was full on Frenching with a picture of some girl. Leo wishes he had brought his phone because he has never stumbled upon blackmail so good.

"-Really pretty, Laurel," Harley's whispering to the picture. "A lot prettier than your sister. She's mean to me, but you're not."

"I think your brother has a crush on this girl," Drew has to put her hand over her mouth to stop the laughter from spilling out. "It's cute in a way. I can imagine a tiny you doing the same thing."

"This isn't cute." Leo's horrified. "I would never do this."

Harley lets out a loud chuckle. "Laurel, I'm gonna make you a deal. If I can read all your _Diary of a Wimpy Kid_ books, then I'll let you read my _Ultimate Spiderman_ comics. But don't spill anything, 'cause my older brother will get really mad at me."

"You've got to admit, it's a bit cute."

"Harley's _eight_ , not six- why is he kissing the paper again?" Leo is getting embarrassed for Harley. He also makes a mental note to hide any of his Spiderman comics.

Leo kicks open the door. "What the heck are you doing?"

Harley screams and drops to the floor. He throws the picture across the room. Then Harley looks up at Leo. "Uhhh, hello."

"Little twerp, what're you doing?" Leo picks Harley up and places him on the bed. Drew returns to Leo's side with the picture in hand.

Besides the fact that' it's a portrait of some girl (one no doubt a copy of a school picture), there's lots of scribbles in pencil and sloppy drawings. Leo's a bit relieved to see no hearts. "Who is this? Your _girlfriend_?"

"No! Get out of my room!" Harley yells, pulling on Leo's limbs. "Get out!"

"I don't know, Harls." Leo waves the picture in front of the child's face. "I think Nyssa would be really interested in hearing about your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend. We're just _friends_ ," Harley jumps to reach the paper. Leo's lucky to at least be tall enough to hold this away from Harley. "Laurel has a twin who's really mean, but me and her are best friends."

"Aw," Drew says.

Harley resorts to kicking Leo. With every kick, Leo can feel a bruise starting to form and grow more colorful every second. "Give it to me!"

"Alright, alright, Messi." Leo winces, grabbing his leg. "Stop kicking me."

Harley snatches the paper and stuffs it away in his bookbag. "Can you get out now?"

"Sure." Leo beams at him. "Tell me about your girlfriend first."

"She's not my girlfriend!"

"Is too."

"Is not!"

"Is too!"

"Is _not!"_

"Stop it," Drew cuts in. She sits on the bed and folds her arms. "You do like this Laurel girl, right?"

"Yeah! She has a lot of LEGO's and comic books. And we watch the same shows like-"

"Okay." Drew nods. "How much do you like her?"

"A _lot_."

"More than Leo?"

" _Duh_."

Leo scoffs. "I'll remember that when we order pizza and you won't get any."

A flood of apologies bubbles out of Harley until Drew cuts in again. "Come sit here and tell me about this Laurel."

"Well, we both have all the _Captain Underpants_ books," Harley starts, leaning onto Drew. Drew makes an absentminded noise and runs her hands through his hair.

Leo settles with just listening. (He's not really listening, though.) Leo can't imagine what it was like being eight. When he was eight, his mother had just died and everything was a whirlwind.

Nyssa had only been entering high school, and Jake was focusing on _leaving_ high school. His father dealt with the death harshly, starting his years of isolation from his children. More importantly, isolation from _Leo_. It's tough trying to take comfort in a father who couldn't bear to see you.

Leo had Piper, but what did she know? She _had_ (still has) both of her parents. She has a sister the same age as her. The only death Piper had ever experienced at that time was their class pet iguana. While Leo could run to Piper every now and then, it wasn't the best help he could've received.

For a while, Leo couldn't even go next door. The thought of seeing Piper and her mother was too much. Aphrodite was really gentle with Leo, claiming he was "in a delicate time", and her kindness pissed Leo off. It's wasn't fair that Piper could have her mom, and Leo _couldn't_.

Leo wonders what might've happened if he met Jason around that time, rather than later. Jason lost his own mom a few years before Leo did so he would know what to do. In different circumstances, but essentially the same.

They are brothers of the Lost. They are kin.

Regardless of what _could've_ happened, what did happen is history. Leo was really frustrated and alone. He cried himself to sleep and had nightmares that made him wake up crying. Nyssa and Jake tried to console him as best as they could, but it wasn't helpful nor actually welcomed.

He never talked about his problems, and still hasn't. There are so many questions Leo has. But they all just lead to the same things: _Why?_ Why me? Why take her? Why not take me? Why is this happening? WhyWhyWhyWhyWhywhywhy _whywhywhywhy_

Leo only started to break out of his funk when Harley was born. There's something cosmic about seeing a baby- one who's going to be _your_ baby bro. Leo remembers the moment when Harley's mother smiled at him and said it was okay for Leo to hold the newborn. And Harley blinked sleepily at him with his small eyes and his small fist holding onto Leo's finger.

And Leo thought that Harley looked like a shooting star because it must've been impossible to be so tiny and yet so precious. He didn't mind it when Harley began to scream and wail in his arms, as long as Leo could hold him and just stare.

And that was that. Harley became very uncute after he started crying in the middle of the night, but Leo didn't particularly mind Harley when he was quiet. Leo let Harley teeth on his finger when no one was looking and whispered all kinds of stories to Harley: how he wished his brother had met his mom, or how Leo wants to be with his mom, or how Leo thinks Harley might end up being just like Leo.

Leo loves Harley to death, but it's hard not to think about how quickly his younger brother came into his life. Harley's birth was ten months after Leo's mama died. The idea that maybe his dad _wasn't_ as depressed as Leo might've thought creeps through his mind every so often. It's something scary and frustrating. He wants to scream at his dad. He wants to fight his dad. He wants to just throw a giant rant and destroy anything in his sight.

"Leo?" It's Harley who slaps his thigh, but it's Drew talking."You okay?"

"Oh yeah," Leo laughs, scratching his head. "Just thinking about how much work I still have left."

Drew analyzes him for a second. "You're friends with Connor, right? Stoll?"

"How do you know that- Nevermind." He recalls the fact that Drew and Rachel are friends, however that happened.

Drew's hands are still going through Harley's hair. He looks like he loves it. Leo would love it too; if a hot girl was massaging his head. "You two are really similar. You remind me of him."

Leo would figure that he and Travis were more alike, but he doesn't mind being compared to Connor. "Thanks?"

"Mm," Drew looks down at Harley. "I think you need some time to relax, Harley. All this girl business and drama requires a spa day. We can make Leo give us facials and paint our nails, right?"

"Okay!" Once again, Leo has never gotten why Harley loves Drew so much.

"Whoa, Drew. Why am I giving out facials and painting nails?" Leo brings his hands together to form a T, to make the _timeout_ symbol. "I don't recall ever agreeing to that."

"You have to," Drew hugs Harley from behind, bring him close to her chest. "Or we'll say you were being mean."

"Yeah, and Nyssa said she'll take away your phone one of these days," Harley looks to be lying on the spot but Leo can't be quick to assume. "... And your DS!"

"She did not say that."

"She did!"

"Did _not_."

"She _did!_ "

Drew cuts in. "I'll eat the pizza if you do it. Better yet, I'll _pay_ for the pizza."

Leo immediately runs down the stairs to try and figure out how to make a face mask.

* * *

"Hey you," Leo steps out his school, to find Apollo standing by the front door. Clumps of teenagers stagger around them, finding their own lost ways through the afternoon.

"Hey, Apollo. What're you doing here?"

Apollo holds up a finger with a key ring swirling around it. "Wanted to take you somewhere. There's this steakhouse that serves the best burgers you'll ever have."

"You don't even like burgers." Leo laughs, tugging on his bag's strap.

"No, but you do." Apollo winks. "And I like _youuuuuu_. Also, the kid's menu has a really tough maze that I've never actually passed after years."

"Oh no. We could never let that happen." Leo rolls his eyes. "Sorry, though, gotta reschedule. I have some friends and we're going out to eat."

"What if I tagged along?" Apollo shrugs. "I wanna do something with you now that you're my boy-"

"Shh!" Leo slaps a hand on Apollo's mouth. "Can you _not?_ "

"Mhcm nda-" Leo lifts his hand. "Can I not what?"

"Say that. The b-word."

"Why not? I want everyone to know." Apollo glances up at the passing students. Only a few pay attention to the older stranger talking to Leo. "Everyone _should_ know."

"Not everyone is cool," Leo struggles for the words to say. "Not everyone is as... _open_ as you."

"Why should that matter?" Apollo folds his arms. His eyes fall behind Leo. "Are those your friends coming here?"

Leo turns his head, to see Rachel and Nico coming towards them. The two are in a deep conversation- or rather, Rachel is in a deep conversation and Nico is just nodding along. It's hard to tell if the guy is really listening or off in another world.

"Yeah, that's them." Leo pulls on his jacket sleeve. It's the beginning of March, with spring coming in soon to bring in a bit of a warmer air. Leo feels a hand going up and down his arm. "Quit touching me."

"Sorry."

"You're not."

"I'm not." Apollo grins widely when Rachel and Nico arrive. "I should probably go, then. See you later, Leo?"

"Who are you?" Rachel asks bluntly before Apollo can slip away. "You look too old to be a student."

"Just a friend of Leo's." Apollo gives an awkward wave. "I should get going soon."

Nico looks up. "Hmm."

Leo watches as Apollo walks down the street and towards a bright yellow Convertible. It's such a vibrant yellow, that it looks like the Sun. Leo would love to pop up the hood on that car to check out its specifics. Would it be bad to _want_ Apollo to get into an accident? That way Leo can check (out) up his car for a few days, and have Apollo around to keep him company.

"Ready for food?" Rachel hooks her arm through Leo's. "Stolls are meeting us there, cause Connor has to talk to a teacher. But lucky us, we get to sit in Nico's car."

"Nico can't drive," Leo frowns.

"No, but he has a father. Scary man, but not really." Rachel tugs on her messenger bag. It's covered in paint stains and glitter. In her other hand, she has a textbook for Chemistry. "Nico doesn't want to admit it but he _loves_ his daddy."

"I'm right here you know." Nico's scanning the parking lot.

"Yeah, but it's true. His dad is cool. Sort of." Rachel puffs up her cheeks and softly blows out air. "Hey, Leo, are your parents cool?"

His dead mom and absent father. Yeah, totally cool. Leo shrugs for an answer. "I don't know."

"Oh. That's cool. Must be nice," For a second Rachel looks upset. Instead, she turns back to Leo with an uncomfortable grin, and she waves to a black Hearse.

Nico jerks his head to the car. "There's my dad. With the Hearse. Again."

Rachel shrugs, skipping down the school steps. "It's better than your stepmom's Prius."

Nico shudders. " _Anything_ is better than her Prius."

* * *

At the restaurant they're eating at, Leo chooses to sit on the edge of the booth, which is a giant mistake.

Out of all the restaurants in the world, Piper and Jason had to choose to eat _here_. Isn't it a little early to have a date night? Don't they have something better to do than eat in front of Leo?

Even with the low lighting, if Leo turns his head _just_ right, he can see them perfectly. Piper has on some pretty shoes- shoes that Leo had previously thought belonged to Drew. Jason has his hair combed neatly. It's not even that type of restaurant. This is a Chinese/Japanese food hybrid. What are they _doing_?

"- I mean she gave me a D, but then I turned in all my homework, and it bumped up to a high C." Travis is talking about his grades. Leo doesn't know why they all _left_ school to talk _about_ school. It's stupid.

" _What_? She gave me a B, cause I didn't hand in _my_ homework." Rachel's outraged by the unfairness.

" _Anyway_ ," Connor changes the topic, although not entirely. "Did you hear about the raccoon that got into the gym? I heard that's why all the gym classes were canceled."

"No way," Nico scoffs. At the same time, Piper laughs from across the establishment. "It's because someone poured paint all over the floors."

"It was _oil_ ," Rachel rolls her eyes. Jason's laughing too. What's so funny? "Someone poured oil over the floors."

Travis snorts. "You're _all_ wrong. It's cause Hedge broke his leg."

"That's the dumbest one yet," Connor throws salt at him.

"You're the dumbest one yet," Travis throws a sugar packet back.

Leo peels his eyes away from his two best friends to his other friends. "It's because his baby was sick."

Rachel's jaw drops. "Coach Hedge has a _baby_?"

"Yeah. His wife gave birth, like, over winter break. Back in January or December."

" _Holy shit,_ " Connor whispers. "Hedge is _married_? If Hedge can get married, _anyone_ can get married."

"Wait, wait- why are we just finding out about it?" Travis squints suspiciously. "Seems like something he would be happy about."

"He is happy," Leo bites the top of his straw. It folds. "He just likes keeping things personal, I guess. I found out like a few weeks ago, just by doing the math. He confirmed it for me. Baby's a boy, named Stone."

This is very untrue, as the baby is actually named Chuck or Steve or something, but Leo's not going to say that. This is an excellent time to start a rumor going. Leo wasn't exactly pleased by the extra laps on Wednesday.

"He named his kid, Stone" Nico _wheezes_. "Like _Stone Hedge_."

"Huh. Didn't even think about it that way." From where Leo can see, Jason is teaching Piper how to use chopsticks. Piper's never gotten the hang of it, and neither has Leo, but Jason never tried to teach _him_. Something acidic and fiery bubbles in Leo's stomach.

"I'm so pooped out," Travis whines, and Rachel rolls her eyes. "I don't want to study anymore."

"SAT's are very important," Rachel scolds. "We have to get high grades."

"Fuck it. I'm gonna drop out of high school and move to LA to start a new life."

Rachel bristles. "The test is next week, stop being a baby about it."

" _Stop being a baby about it_ , ugh. I just want to sleep." Travis rubs his eyes.

"Leo, what'd you get?" Rachel ignores Travis now.

"Huh? Oh, uh 15-something. It might be the 1500 or 1530." Leo says.

Connor tries to flick a water droplet off his cup. "That's high."

"I guess. I mean, not really."

"No, it is," Nico says. "I have a friend, who had like, a 13-something."

"You don't have friends," Connor pokes Nico.

"No, but I have victims, want to join them?"

"Anyway, it's a bit high," Rachel says, moving over to avoid getting poked by either Connor or Nico's fingers. "You and your friends just have higher standards than you think."

"Jason and Piper…?" Leo looks towards them. Piper had gone to the bathroom, and Jason is texting someone. What if they're texting each other? Stupid. Stupidstupidstupid.

Rachel nods. "Yeah. You guys are just really smart. Come down for us common folk, eh?"

"We're not smart." _I'm not smart_. If anything, Leo's the dumb one. He gets the worse grades and says the stupidest things. The SAT's were a fluke- he might've just been having a good day at the time.

Travis looks bored but apparently is bored enough to talk next. "Dude, you know you're probably in the top ten of your class, right?"

"You mean _Jason_ is. He's the smart one out of us." Leo doesn't know how he can explain it to them. It's frustrating but Leo has never and _will_ never be considered the "smart one" out of JasonPiperLeo.

"You're _all_ smart," Rachel says. "Just smarter than you _think_."

"This is ridiculous." Leo stands up. "I'm going to the bathroom."

When he gets back, they're all arguing about movies. Leo slips into the conversation without saying anything, and they hardly notice or care. Nico only nods at him, to acknowledge Leo's back.

Jason and Piper are leaving, arms around each other. Every step they take towards the door is a tiny stomp on Leo's entire being.

* * *

Annabeth is really pretty when she smiles. Her beauty shines as she beams at Leo, and puts a hand on his shoulder.

"This is amazing." She says softly, congratulating him on his work.

Leo scratches his nose. "It's only an exoskeleton. I asked Malcolm to work on the chest pieces, and Chris to do the feet."

"So what's Shane doing?"

Leo rolls his eyes. "He says it's dragon research, but he's just watching _Game of Thrones_."

"Yeah, he does that." Annabeth sits on the table. "I've already ordered some new wires because I remember you mentioning it. Also, there's a bunch of pliers I found for the small stuff."

"Thanks." Leo sits back and pushes his hair out of his face. It's starting to get too long and hard to comb through. "I've been meaning to ask- but who's your sponsor? All clubs need to have a sponsor to work."

"Oh," Annabeth presses her lips together and shrugs. "One of the guidance counselors, actually. She claims it's a shame to see something that used to nurture such brilliant students go to waste. Said something about the knowing the perfect child to join, but I guess they never did."

"Who do you think it is?"

Annabeth looks through Leo's plans again. "Not sure. She told me about it when I was a freshman, so they probably graduated by now."

"Mm." Leo picks his screwdriver back up.

"If anything, I think it could be you. You've been such a great addition to our team. If you weren't graduating, the team could've made its way back into its fame."

This startles Leo, and he looks up. Annabeth pretends she hadn't said anything and is still peering at his work.

"What?"

Annabeth waves it off. "Don't worry about it. Remember, competition's in late March."

"Wait." Before she can walk off, Leo grabs her wrist. "Don't you want to help or something?"

"I would love to," Annabeth's eyes roam greedily to Leo and the other members. "But this is your thing. If I took some part of it, I would want to take _all_ of it."

In all honesty, Leo would do the same if the roles were reversed. He nods and dips his head back down.

He's got a dragon to build.

* * *

There's something that can't compare to the feeling of holding a baby in your arms. It's not the fact that it's a _cute_ baby- but more like this is _something._ This tiny fragile thing that can wither away so easily, is the result and union of two people. It's of _love_.

Leo used to be that small. He kind of still _is_.

Leo watches the babe until he closes his eyes. Hedge takes his baby back to his wife, as the rest of the team coos over the tired woman and child.

"Are you crying?" It's strange hearing Hedge whisper (which is about the same decibel levels as a normal person speaking). "Pull yourself together, kid."

Leo averts his eyes. He's not sure why he's crying. Maybe it's the fact that the team is nearing its final meet. Maybe it's the baby a few feet away. Maybe it's just allergies.

There's a nudge at his arm. Leo looks to find a wrinkled napkin shoved towards him by an impatient hand. Coach is looking the other way, but his hand is still extended towards Leo.

"Sure is hot here," Hedge is saying loudly, but not loud enough to wake the baby (whose name actually _is_ Chuck). "You're all sweaty and smelly. Give me a final lap and hit the showers, cupcakes!"

Leo takes the napkin and wipes his face. If anyone looks towards him, he might just put it off as sweat. He thinks that's what Coach was trying to tell him to do.

Leo breathes out. He's okay. He doesn't know why he was crying in the first place, but he's fine now.

Chuck wakes up with a loud wail.

* * *

Rachel has been wearing green every day in March. Green socks, green shirts, green jeans. Today she has the ugliest tie Leo has ever seen. It's bright green with gross orange stripes across the width.

"What's with all the green?" Leo finally asks, after school. They all decided to hang out Nico's place and play video games.

Rachel squints at the tv screen. "I'm Irish."

"St. Patrick's day is only one day, y'know."

"Well, I'm Irish _every day_ , so I can celebrate _every day._ "

Connor leans back, typing on his phone. "She's insane. It's 'cause all her druggie friends are crazy."

"Druggie friends," Leo repeats. There are only three controllers, which Nico, Rachel, and Travis snatched up, leaving Leo and Connor to find something to do. As most would, Connor instantly went to his phone, while Leo tried to finish his homework.

"Yeah," Connor stares at Leo's papers. He doesn't look interested at all, but Leo can't blame him. It's boring. There's a research paper due in two days. "You know Grover? Weed."

Rachel pauses the game. "Hey! Grover does _not_ do weed."

"It's Juniper who does," Nico stretches. His stomach peeks from under his pitch black sweatshirt. He's very pale. "Grover just covers for her sometimes."

"Cool, I guess. I do me, they do them." Leo spins his pencil between his fingers. "I didn't know Rachel had other friends."

"Dude, we all do." Travis looks at Leo and rolls his eyes. "Shit, did you know Nico is friends with literally half of the school. He's a demented little skeleton social butterfly."

Nico flips him off. "I'm going to pretend that those words didn't actually go through your brain and you _still_ thought it was okay to say."

"It gets boring sometimes," Connor's looking through Leo's binder. He flips to the front, where Leo's schedule is. "I honestly need a break from your ugly faces."

" _You're_ the one with the ugly face!" Travis hollers.

"No, _you_ are!"

" _Shut up!_ You're _so_ ugly! Right, Leo?"

"Uh-"

Rachel cracks her knuckles. "You're both ugly."

"Anyway," Connor sticks his tongue at Travis from across the room.

"Don't you guys feel weird about it though?" Leo taps his pencil eraser on his forehead. "If your friends have other friends?"

"Dude," Travis says, over a loud and nearly animalistic monster roar coming from the TV screen. "It's okay to have more than one group of friends. What the hell are you even talking about?"

Leo's eyebrows furrow. "I don't know. Leave me alone, my brain hurts from this textbook."

Connor slaps the pages of the textbook. "Gotta get your education, dude. You gotta get those smarts."

" _Smarts_." Nico echoes. Rachel laughs.

Leo groans into the binding of his textbook.

* * *

It's March, so on that one particular Sunday morning, Leo dials the number without even thinking about it.

As it rings, he hangs up because _what is he doing?_ Then Leo calls again.

Jason answers the phone immediately this time.

"Hey."

"Hey." Leo lays on his back. His pillow is too far out of reach, and the blankets had been kicked off in his sleep. "How are you?"

"Okay. Leo, you know it's 4 in the morning, right?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm hanging up-"

"Wait, no." Leo scratches his ear. "Uh, how are you?"

"Okay. Like I said earlier."

"No, but," Leo turns to his side, and whispers into the phone like he's afraid of someone hearing. Even though he's alone in his bedroom, and everyone else in the house is asleep. " _How are you_?"

"Oh," Jason says. He sighs. "I'm fine. You know you don't have to keep calling me every year about this?"

"Dude." Leo frowns. "Today's the day your mom… y'know."

"Died." The word is blunt and sharp with no emotion. "Yeah, _I know_."

"So, like, how are you?"

"Leo, my mom died twelve years ago. I'm over it."

Leo stares at his flip phone for ten seconds before pressing it back to his face. "You can't be over someone's death like that."

"Listen, Leo." Jason hesitates. "I don't know how to tell you this, but my mom wasn't even a good mother. I got over it after some time. It's been _twelve years_."

"She _tried_ to be a mom."

"Yeah, she tried being the mother of a _wine_ _baby_." Jason sighs again. "I'm still going to see her grave, though. My father's taking me. He's in a suit and he bought some roses or something."

"That's good."

"Mhm. He doesn't miss my mom but he's sorry that she left." Jason does some shuffling around on his end. "Hold on, I'm going to put you on speakerphone."

"Okay." The glow-in-the-dark stars on the ceiling have a very dim green glow. He's been wanting to replace them for years but finds no point in doing it now. "So no more mom feelings?"

There's splashing of water and fabric moving. "Of course there are mom feelings, she's my _mom_. I'm always going to be sad when I see other people with their moms. You know what I mean, right?"

Yes. God _yes_.

"But I got over it when I was, like eight. It was stupid anyway- it's not like my mom actually did the stuff other moms did. Why buy your kids ice cream when you can buy a new wine glass?"

"Yeah. I mean, not _yeah_ , but yeah."

" _Yeah_." Jason's silent for a moment. His voice comes off softer. "I don't think I've ever had that connection with either of my parents, and I've gotten used to it. And don't you dare say I still have daddy issues."

"I won't."

"Good. Because I don't." Jason forces out, except his voice squeaks at the end, and it sounds like he's trying to reassure himself, more than Leo. "Anyway, you don't have to call every March 12th, Leo."

"Fine. I won't." Leo rolls onto his stomach. "You should probably talk about it though."

"With who, _you?_ No offense, but you're not exactly the best to talk about family to."

"What?"

"It's just," Something shifts on the phone and Jason sounds a lot more clear. "You've got problems, too."

"I don't." Leo's fingers press into his bedsheets.

"You _do_. You always deny it but you definitely _do_. It's not any of my business, though."

Leo's silent.

"Listen, I've got to go and take a shower since I'm up now." Jason coughs. "I'll see you later, man, alright? You coming to the lacrosse interest meeting?"

"No. I don't do sports."

"You did cross country," Jason sounds uncomfortable. "Guess I'll see you later then?"

"Yeah, sure. Bye."

"Bye."

* * *

Drew makes more cupcakes. It's weird that Leo finds himself helping her make them at his house, rather than hers.

"Piper's being a bitch again," Drew explains, as she pours flour in the giant bowl.

"But you're the bitch." Leo lifts himself on the counter.

"Say that again, and I'll make you _my_ bitch."

Leo gets passed a bowl and a couple of eggs to crack. "So you're in my house, why?"

Drew lets out a frustrated huff when her hair falls in her eyes. "Piper's hasn't done any of the dishes."

"So why not do it yourself?"

"They're disgusting."

"That's something you and the dishes have in common."

"Fuck off, Valdez." Drew pushes back a hair again. "Do you have a hair tie?"

"Who do you think I am, Rapunzel?" Leo slides off the counter. "Yeah, give me a sec."

He comes back, with two hair ties on his wrist. "C'mere."

Leo's learned to French Braid from Piper. Drew's hair is very long, and it takes Leo a bit longer than normal to fix his handiwork. Drew observes her hair from the reflective surface of a pan.

"Not bad," she muses. Drew turns to Leo. "Pass me the other one."

Leo does, and suddenly, he has hands in his hair. When Drew's done, Leo touches his head. He has the tiniest sprout of a ponytail on at the very top, erupting like a volcano of black curls.

"You should let me cut your hair." Drew steps back, looking him over. "Stop growing it out."

"I'll think about it." Leo hops back on the counter and continues stirring. Drew hums as she begins pouring more ingredients in the bowls.

"You've got flour on your chest." Leo nods his head towards her. They had just finished pushing the last of the cupcake trays into the oven, and they're exhausted. Drew's taking out water bottles.

"Pervert," Drew says half-heartedly, as she wipes her chest. Leo would normally stare, but his entire body feels like jelly. He groans, and leans on the table.

"When are you going to frost these bad boys?" Leo gestures to the cupcake covered kitchen.

Drew shrugs. "Have to wait for my mom to get the frosting."

Leo groans again. "Better hope it's fast. Harley's been sneaking in to steal some for the past ten minutes."

Drew narrows her eyes at the doorway.

"It doesn't even matter," Leo continues. "You would've gave him some anyway."

"Maybe," Drew relaxes. "But these are my prom cupcakes. They're important."

"Again? Why not something new."

"People like cupcakes."

Leo stretches. His back cracks and he sighs in relief. "Why are you so worried about prom? It's stupid."

"No, it's not." Drew lazily throws spoons and bowls in the sink. Leo snatches the final bowl before she can dispose of it. "You better not be eating the batter."

"You don't control me," Leo sticks his finger around the sides. "Mm, I might not even go to prom."

"You should," Despite her disagreement, Drew swipes her index finger across the rim. "Not that I care, but it's one less vote for me."

"Who said I was voting for you? Who are the other candidates?"

"Annabeth and Juniper." Drew crinkles her nose.

"Annabeth is pretty cool," Leo basically cleaned the bowl to make it sparkle. He drops it in the sink and pours dish soap around. "I heard Juniper does drugs."

"She does."

"Do _you_ do drugs? Druggin Drew?"

"No. Shut up."

"Heh. I'm still not going to prom though. I didn't even go to homecoming."

Drew frowns. "I thought you did. Piper and Jason went together."

"No, I didn't." Leo didn't know that. Neither of them had mentioned going to homecoming, so at the time, Leo hadn't thought to go.

"You should still go to prom. It's your final one." Drew pulls at her clothes and smoothes her hair.

"No. I don't even have anyone to go with."

"What, because you're- ugh. Just go with Travis. He wouldn't mind."

Leo presses his palms against his eyelids. "God. Travis is so… _Travis_. I love him and all but..."

"Why are you telling me this? I don't care." Drew shrugs. "I just want another vote."

"This is why I'm voting for Annabeth."

"Hope you like the movie _Carrie_ then."

Leo laughs so hard he grips the counter. Drew giggles, and everything is fine.

* * *

 **a/n: i never mentioned this but this is probably one of my fav chapters. only 2 chapters posted, but both are relatively long, plus i'm making up for missing last week.**


	19. e (5)

**lol i'm so bad with updates and things have been really weird on the days i actually did try to update... anyway, merry x-mas, here's 4 chaps, hoping to make up for my absentmindedness :)**

* * *

 **e**

Nyssa's birthday is a somewhat weird tradition for their family. She almost never really wants to celebrate it, but everyone else does.

Jake's done with decorating the cake, and Harley's done with blowing up balloons. There are only four balloons because the boy kept popping them for fun. There are a few other people who Nyssa is friends with- Clarisse and Chris, and Castor and Pollux.

"Alright, people let's get this show on the road," Leo calls out, cupping his hands around his mouth. "Subject is pulling up in the driveway."

Jake rolls his eyes. "Weren't you supposed to go with her to the store?"

"I don't recall," Leo fully remembers the plan. He was supposed to go with Nyssa to prolong her journey but didn't wake up early enough to do it.

Clarisse cracks her knuckles, as she turns to Harley. "Stop sucking up the helium."

Harley squeaks, but no one is quite sure if it's from the helium or the fact that Clarisse can probably use him as a football. She's scarily strong and rough, which is something she holds in common with Nyssa.

From what Leo remembers, Nyssa and Clarisse became friends when they were in middle school together. With Clarisse came Chris, who joined their friendship when they reached high school and Chris and Clarisse started dating. (Leo considers this the weirdest relationship ever, considering Chris might be one of the sweetest people ever, and Clarisse is _Clarisse_.) Then the twins, Castor and Pollux, joined them when they were in college at New Rome.

"Remember no surprise," Jake warns.

There's a jingling at the door, as Nyssa tries to unlock the door.

Nyssa slides through the door. "Hey, Jake can you take-"

" _SURPRISE!_ "

Leo hears Jake's hand hit his forehead. Leo snickers. "Jesus, Harley, you had one job."

"I forgot!" Harley whines in a high pitched chipmunk voice.

"You fool," Leo pokes his fingers into Harley's gut.

"Hey!" Harley tries to get Leo back, but Leo's already on the other side of the room.

"Yo, dudes." Pollux nods at them. His eyes look nearly purple in the light. "Chill out."

Castor wraps an arm around Pollux's shoulder. "They're just working on their problems. Remember when we used to do that?"

Pollux pokes Castor in the stomach, causing Castor to double over.

Jake passes around plates piled with cake. It's vanilla topped with too much vanilla frosting. Leo's face lights up when he sees the sugar loaded on his plate.

"Hey Nys," Leo crooks his elbow on Nyssa's shoulder. "Guess what I got you."

"A restraining order that keeps you five feet away." Nyssa shrugs off his arm.

"Ha, maybe next year." Leo shakes his head. He fumbles with the object in his pocket. "I got you a harmonica. With your name on it."

"Aw, that's nice." Nyssa kisses his cheek. "But be prepared for Harley to take it and wake you up with it."

Leo hadn't thought of that. He probably should've, considering the Great Kazoo Attack of '09 that he did to Jake and Nyssa.

"Yikes," Nyssa laughs. "Gotta think ahead to be apart of this family. Watch out."

Harley finally manages to tackle Leo and poke him to his heart's content. Leo doesn't even mind.

Leo's smiling so much he's afraid his face will shatter.

* * *

"You're happy," Apollo observes, leaning his head on Leo's neck. Apollo's taller, so it's a bit awkward, but sweet, nevertheless.

"I am." Leo nods. He throws a can of beans in the cart. "I have college letters."

"Thick or not?"

"Thick. Very thick." Leo ducks his head to hide his smile. "I want to wait until I have all of them first. Jason called me about going to New Rome."

"Jason, Jason, Jason," Apollo taps his chin. He pushes the shopping cart down the aisle. "Blond with glasses? Very Clark Kent."

"You _get_ me," Leo mumbles into Apollo's jacket. It's a leather jacket, so it's very hot- in more ways than one. Leo had tried to explain it's temperature disadvantages in the car, and Apollo had left him blushing on the way out. "Jason is very Clark Kent. That's my nickname for him. He's the blond Superman."

"Is it a nickname if it's longer than his real name?"

Leo cocks his hand on his hip. He steps on his toes and gets in Apollo's face. "And what about _Leoster_? That's more than double the amount of letters in Leo."

Apollo leans in and pecks him on the lips- quickly and softly. "That doesn't count. That's _my_ nickname for you."

"Only 'cause you can't think of anything better."

" _Sure_ , Frodo."

Leo steps away and turns into the next aisle. He winces, then backs out to where he came from. The cart hits his back and Apollo mumbles something under his breath. "Are we going to get rice, or...?"

"You know what's a better idea?" Leo rubs his back. "Let's just go get some of the other ingredients..."

Apollo pushes the cart into the aisle, regardless if Leo's ankles are getting hit by the bar. "It's rice and beans, there _are_ no other ingredients."

Leo grabs Apollo's arm and jerks him in the opposite direction. "Can we just-"

"Oh, hey, Leo!"

Leo squeezes Apollo's bicep, before turning to the voice. "Oh hey, Piper. Is that Jason over there?"

Piper grins at Leo and shrugs. "Who knows what Jason's doing? I think he's comparing beets? No one eats beets, though."

"Oh, how nice." Leo mentally slaps himself. Why does he sound so fake?

Apollo's arm flexes under his fingers, causing Leo to let go. Apollo rubs his arm but shoots Piper a warm smile. "You must be Piper. It's good to put a name to a face. A really pretty face."

Piper blushes, and Leo nearly steps on Apollo's foot. He doesn't though, but Leo's face feels hot. "Uh, sorry, I don't think Leo's ever mentioned you?"

"Apollo," He winks. Leo coughs.

"Like the god?" Piper arches a brow and tucks a hair behind her ear. "Greek mythology?"

"That's the one!" Apollo snaps his fingers. "Don't tell me- you read mythology? Leo's never mentioned that."

Only because Leo's never _known_. Hell, Leo hadn't even known Piper knew who Apollo is.

"Oh, not really," Piper beams. "My dad's been researching a bit about mythology lately, and I've been reading some of his research, is all."

Right. Piper's dad. Struggling actor. Getting abs. Leo can't recall what movie he's working on, but he can only assume it's about Greek mythology now. Piper normally tells him this stuff, but he must've been too busy.

Piper's phone rings and she checks the screen. "Oh that's Jason, he's probably at the check out by now."

"Probably," Leo mumbles.

Piper smiles at both of them. "Well, see you later, then. We should talk more often."

The last statement is probably directed at Leo. Lately, it seems like all Piper's wanted to do is _talk_.

Leo punches Apollo's arm when Piper is gone. "Dude."

"What? She's nice." Apollo winces.

"You can't just _flirt_ with Piper."

"I wasn't. Why would I flirt with her when I've got the cutest guy ever right next to me?"

Leo blinks. He drops his face into his hands. "Oh my _god_ , what's wrong with me? What's wrong with you? What's wrong with us?"

Apollo balances his chin on Leo's head. "Mmm, I think it's because we didn't get the rice. Y'know. For our rice and beans."

"You _think_."

"I mean, we _have_ been here for an hour and there are only two ingredients that we need."

Leo steps away, with a glare. "That was _so_ not my fault. _You_ were the one who wanted to make out in the car."

Apollo pushes the shopping cart. "And you were the one who agreed."

Leo softly pushes his head into Apollo's back and sighs. "Can we just get back to your place? I want to sleep."

"And not eat the rice n' beans?"

"Quit saying it like that."

"Rice and beans."

"Stop it."

"Rice _and_ beans."

" _Nooooo_."

"Rice! And! Beans!"

" _Nooooooooooo_."

"R to the i to the c to the e to the a to the n to the d-"

" _Apollooooo_!"

* * *

"Heh, just kidding. It's just them regular ol' rice n' _beans_."

 **RED [9:41]:** Is it possible to fail the SATs?  
 **RED [9:41]:** Can I get a 0?  
 **THING ONE [9:42]:** shut up you did better than me  
 **RED [9:42]:** Maybe because you should study more often?  
 **THING ONE [9:42]:** dont tell me what to do  
 **THING TWO [9:43]:** You should study more though  
 **THING ONE [9:43]:** did i ask u  
 **THING ONE [9:43]:** did i

(Around this time, Leo's just reading along. He messes with the controls, to change the colors of the messages. A few months ago, color-coded messages were only reserved for [pink] Piper and [blue] Jason. Now his conversations are a rainbow of people.)

 **RED [9:46]:** I still feel really bad though  
 **EMO [9:46]:** Is this a group chat. Why am I here.  
 **THING ONE [9:46]:** yo its cause we love u  
 **EMO [9:46]:** Gross

(Nico exits the chat and Leo snickers to himself. His teacher glares at him, and Piper looks over at him curiously. Jason turns a page in their class novel, but still gives Leo a warning glance.)

 **THING TWO [9:47]:** Do none of you have class?  
 **THING ONE [9:47]:** dont you have class  
 **THING ONE [9:47]:** no u dont  
 **THING ONE [9:47]:** u have no class  
 **RED [9:47]:** Chem  
 **THING ONE [9:48]:** chem w/ red next 2 me  
 **THING TWO [9:48]:** You don't even take chem  
 **THING ONE [9:48]:** yh neither does red  
 **THING ONE [9:48]:** its called coke

(Piper tilts her head, analyzing him. There's no point- unless she can read tiny phone screens at a distance, then she would be left clueless.)

 **THING TWO [9:52]:** Jeez  
 **THING ONE [9:52]:** we figured it out ok  
 **THING ONE [9:53]:** how to make coke  
 **THING ONE [9:53]:** we're in the chem room  
 **THING ONE [9:54]:** mixing chemicals  
 **THING TWO [9:58]:** Dude  
 **RED [9:58]:** Don't listen to him  
 **RED [9:58]:** I'm in Chem doing chem work  
 **RED [9:59]:** He's in the bathroom, next to the chem lab  
 **THING ONE [10:00]:** u sell out  
 **RED [10:01]:** :P  
 **THING TWO [10:01]:** I very much do not like you Travis  
 **THING ONE [10:03]:** ok but u wont be getting any coke  
 **THING TWO [10:06]:** Ew where's it from the urinals?  
 **THING ONE [10:06]:** a man's gotta do what a mans gotta do

(Leo gets told to go into the hallway to calm himself down. He collapses into chuckles along the door.)

(When he comes back, Piper's filled out part of the worksheet for Leo, and Jason's already putting the class books back on the shelf.)

* * *

It's April. Annabeth invites Leo to go with her and a few friends to see a game.

"It's lacrosse, over at SPQR." She explains, her eyes shifting through math problems. "You've been working hard for the past few months so I think you'll need the break."

"Sure," Leo finds his mouth agreeing faster than his brain can process the invite. "I'll totally be there."

Despite her invitation, Annabeth looks genuinely surprised to see Leo at the Friday night game. She moves over on the bleachers and grins. "Hey, didn't think you were going to make it. Uh, these are my friends- you've met Percy, right?"

"Yo." Percy turns his head at the sound of his name and nods at Leo. He has this casual and cool smile on- can someone be the definition of _chillaxing_? Leo nods back because it's the cool people way to greet people, and Percy seems like someone Leo would want to impress.

"This is Reyna and Octavian." Annabeth gestures to the two on the other side of Percy. She says Octavian's name blandly. Leo only waves hi and winces when he remembers his last meeting with reject Draco. Ugh.

Annabeth sits back down and pulls on the sleeves of her bright orange CHB sweatshirt. It stands out next to Percy's SPQR purple own. "The game hasn't started yet," Annabeth whispers to Leo. "You've ever seen a lacrosse game?"

Once or twice. He's practiced throwing the ball for Jason to catch in the stick for a really long time, last year. Leo tells her this.

"Good! So you should have some idea of what's going on." Annabeth turns her body a little to angle more towards her boyfriend. It's not rude, just personal, so Leo doesn't mind.

Percy cups his hands at yells at some people at the bottom of the bleachers. "YO FRANK, HAZEL!"

Leo only briefly recognizes their faces, as they come up towards the group. He can hear Octavian's distasteful comments and Hazel's delight.

Frank passes Leo without a glance, but Hazel lingers a bit.

"You're, uh, Leo?" Hazel bites her lip. "I've seen you around my house before."

"What?"

"With Nico." Hazel nods, now sure of herself. "He's my stepbrother. I don't think he likes talking about me, but I've seen you before."

Leo tries thinking of all the times he's been to Nico's house. Maybe if he thinks about it hard enough, he _can_ recall a flash of gold at the corners or eyes peeking through a cracked door. Leo smiles at her and Hazel blushes.

There's a team on the field. Based on the ugly orange lettering on black, it's CHB. Leo's eyes draw to number 4, with GRACE written under it.

That's Jason. Jason plays lacrosse and hadn't mentioned it to Leo- though Leo probably should've expected it.

At the same exact moment that Leo notices Jason, Jason notices Leo. It's the meeting of eyes and the sharp look of surprise but also a look of being pleased on Jason's face that makes Leo smirk and wave. Jason slowly waves back, like he's stunned Leo is communicating with _him_.

The view gets blocked when the crowd stands, but regardless, Leo feels oddly energized and pumped for the game. He wants CHB to kick some ass.

The ball gets thrown in the air.

When it's half-time, Leo stumbles down the bleachers. He hopes he can catch Jason for a few seconds. Leo doesn't have anything to say to Jason, but it'll still be nice to see him.

Jason's on the bench drinking water.

"Hey."

"Sup." Jason puts down that bottle and nods. Another cool nod sent in Leo's way. If Jason and Percy meet, would they nod the whole night and completely understand each other? "You good, Leo?"

"Yeah." Leo fidgets. "You wanna go grab a victory meal afterward?"

Jason tosses his head back and laughs. An honest to God head-back-shoulders-shaking-belly-aching pure laugh.

"Jeez, Leo," Jason wipes at his eye. "This is the worst we've played this season."

"Yeah, duh, but you can pick yourselves up." Leo honestly thought they were winning. He doesn't understand the game much, and he doubts he ever will at this point. Sports aren't his thing. But what _is_ his thing? Does he _have_ a thing?

"Sure, I'll go out with you," There's a whistle signaling for Jason's attention. A coach- their school has multiple coaches, but Leo only really knows Hedge- waves at Jason to come over.

"You're going to _what_?" Leo nearly trips, even though he's standing in place.

Jason stares at him quizzically, snapping on his helmet. "Go with you... to get some food? I'm starved."

"Yeah, okay. I'll see you then?" Leo gives Jason a soft punch on the shoulder. "You better win out there."

When Leo crawls back up to his seat, Annabeth raises an eyebrow. "Friend?"

Leo collapses and rubs his temple. "You have no idea."

* * *

CHB loses terribly.

They still go out to eat, drizzling syrup on pancakes at 11 pm.

With the way Jason smiles at him, Leo feels like a winner.

* * *

Leo wakes up in the middle of the night, in cold sweat. He sits up in the darkness and tries to calm his breathing. At the foot of his bed, Festus is gone from her normal spot.

Leo slips through the house quietly, carefully watching for all the squeaky boards and cautious of the light underneath Jake's door. He steps into the kitchen, nearly tripping over Festus.

"Jesus, girl." Leo grabs a cup from the cabinet. "Scared the crap out of me. I nearly hit my head on the counter."

Opening the fridge, he turns back to Festus. The dog lays sprawled out in a comfortable position on the cold floor. Leo frowns behind his glass. Festus doesn't normally sleep there. Her leg twitches.

Leo mentally debates on moving her. In the off chance that Jake would come out to go to the kitchen, he wouldn't be able to get around her. Stupid wheelchair.

Still, Leo reasons through another glass of water, he doesn't know how to lift Festus considering she might be more than half of Leo's weight.

Leo flicks on the kitchen light- therefore stopping him from stumbling around in the dark any longer- and crouches near Festus. Her eyes are open, the normal chocolate brown glazed over.

"Festus." Leo shakes her. She doesn't move. " _Festus_."

"Come on, girl." Leo shakes furiously. Leo's heart is beating too fast, while Festus' isn't beating at all. He buries his face in her fur. "Ohmygodohmygodohmygod."

"Leo?" Leo looks up, to find Nyssa standing over him. "Why are you crying?"

"Festus- I- she-," Leo hiccups. Nyssa crouches and tries finding Festus' pulse. "She was just laying here- and I just thought-"

"Oh, _Leo_." Nyssa steps over Festus and pulls him into a limb breaking hug. Leo sobs into her shoulder, keeping his eyes on Festus.

Nyssa doesn't let go, and Leo wants to close his eyes and never open them again.

Let his eyes grow pale and glaze over. Like Festus'.

* * *

He makes a tiny sign. It sticks out a newly made hump in their backyard.

In the movies, there's always rain during funerals, but it's the clearest day of the week.

Leo kicks a rock into place, finishing the circle of stones placed around Festus. It's a circle of remembrance but it feels like a fence.

A fence of safety keeping Leo out.

Leo folds his legs up and sits on the grass. He doesn't come in until it's pitch black and Harley runs out yelling its bedtime.

Leo doesn't fall asleep that night nor does he think he ever will.


	20. m

**m**

"Test 41," Leo puts his head on the table. "Go."

Annabeth winces as the machine wobbles in the air cautiously, wings flapping. Shane's eyebrows furrow as he directs the robot upwards. It smacks the ceiling and drops.

Leo sighs, covering his face in the crook of his arms. "This is fucking stupid. I don't want to do this anymore."

Annabeth says something to the other members that Leo doesn't hear. There's a hand on his shoulder and Annabeth's voice rings loud. "We'll get it next time. I'm going to check out all the kinks again."

"Whatever," Leo mumbles.

He almost falls asleep, until he hears the painful screech of a chair being pulled across the floor. Leo looks up to see Calypso sitting in the chair and rolling her eyes.

"What?" Leo spits out.

"I didn't say anything."

Leo stares.

Calypso stares back.

Leo's about to put his head back down when Calypso clears her throat.

"Yes?"

"I didn't _say_ anything."

"Can you stop?"

"Can _you_ stop?"

Leo sits up and folds his arms. "Stop _what?_ You're the one making noise."

"You're the one being a dick." Calypso tugs on her sweater. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing's up with me," Leo yawns. "I'm just tired and sick. Leave me alone."

"You're being more of a dick than usual."

"I'm not a dick, you dick."

"Sounds like something a dick would say."

Despite the oddity of it all, Leo smiles. "You're a terrible friend, Calypso."

She shrugs. "Okay."

Leo closes his eyes and coughs. "Is that it? Was this some kind of intervention?"

"No. Just wanted you to fucking chill."

"Like you know what it means to be chill." Leo coughs again.

"I do. What drama do you see me in? When does my name ever come up? Never, because I'm fucking chill."

Leo opens his eyes. "What are you talking about?"

Calypso's eyes shift. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it."

"Every time you say that it makes me worry more."

Calypso checks her phone for something. "People are dicks. I just don't want you to be one of them. Just chill out, is all I'm saying."

Leo rubs his face. "You're frustrating because you never make sense. Is all that nicotine making you a wise Yoda?"

"You bet your ass it is." Calypso snorts and then composes herself. Her fingers fly across her phone screen and her frown deepens. "Hey. You're not off-put by the smoking, right?"

"No." Leo sits up straighter. He sneezes. "It's cool. Sort of. I don't know, why are you asking?"

"It's just-" Calypso swallows. "You wouldn't stop hanging out with someone because they're doing something that's bad."

"It's not _that_ bad." Leo scratches along his jaw. He'd have to shave sooner or later- it's been a while since he's thought to do that. "I mean- some people don't like it. I'm pretty sure Jake would kick my ass if he found out I was friends with you, but I don't care."

"That's the thing. You wouldn't stop liking me, even if I was into something people don't like." Calypso nods. "Same to you, Leo. Seriously."

"Thanks? I still have no idea what you're talking about."

Calypso rolls her eyes. "We're not talking about anything. I'm just curious."

"Well stop it. It hurts my brain. Stop being curious."

"Will keep that in mind."

Leo smirks. "I'm _always_ on your mind."

"Pretty much," Calypso says casually, leaning back in her chair.

"Ha, what?"

"Well, I'm wondering how much time it would take to round up enough money to get you the help you truly need."

Leo laughs. "And you call _me_ a dick? You suck."

"At least I made you laugh," Calypso grins. "You've been too tired to be enjoyable. Stop it. It hurts my brain. Stop being tired."

"Will keep that in mind."

With Calypso in mind, after exactly 8 more tries and 2 more days, the Robotics club did it. They finished.

It was done.

Leo's grin spreads ear to ear and he's as bright as the Sun.

* * *

Leo tries to stay away from home as much as he can. He can't stay at home because it doesn't _feel_ right. At first, he didn't want to leave his backyard, but now he wants to be everywhere but.

He's walking along the street when it starts to rain. Leo just sits on the sidewalk and calls Nyssa to pick him up. He spends time watching the water swirl down into a sewer drain. Across the street, a few kids around the age of 6 or 7 huddles around the sidewalk, meticulously poking a worm with sticks. One of the girls in the group looks queasy in her bright pink raincoat until her friend grabs her hand.

Nyssa's car splashes Leo, soaking him with icy water.

"Why didn't you call Piper or Jason?" Nyssa immediately turns on the heater, when Leo comes in sopping wet. " _Jesus_ , didn't I tell you to bring an umbrella? Were you just sitting there for half an hour?"

"No," Leo fiddles with the door lock. Flick, and the door's locked. Flick, and the door's unlocked. He could push open the door and roll out onto the street. His body would make a satisfying collision, and Nyssa would scream because Leo would be there and then he wouldn't be. At the thought, Leo locks the door and tugs on his seatbelt instead.

"You're such a kid sometimes," Nyssa reaches in the back to pull her coat up to the front. She waits until the next red light to drape it over Leo. "You're going to get sick if you do that."

"Good."

Nyssa ignores that and switches the radio station. Leo doesn't understand why she's so picky about it. It's placed on some kind of Spanish love song, that Leo sort of knows the words to. It's a repetitive Top 40 in Mexico.

"You want to talk?" Nyssa finally says, turning her wheel. "Your counselor called and told me to schedule a trip with your doctor."

"My counselor is a fucking liar."

" _Leo!"_

"Sorry. She's an f-ing liar."

"That's not any better." Nyssa turns her head to glare. She lets out a heavy sigh and sinks back into her chair. "Y'know you used to be so sweet. I don't know what happened."

Leo has nothing to say to that. He never had anything to say, whenever someone talked about his childhood. It was his childhood, _yes_ , but who cares?

"Do you remember that time, when you took a crap on the floor because you were angry?" Nyssa starts giggling to herself. "And your mom went into the room and started yelling and cursing because she thought Festus had forgotten her training, and you just stood there with the biggest grin on your face."

"Can we not talk about that?" Leo rubs his face into the seat belt. It smells like cigarette smoke for some reason. And then Leo realizes that it's not the seatbelt, but it's his _jacket_. "That was so embarrassing. You told everyone you knew, so now all my teachers knew me as the Poop Boy before I was even in their class."

"I like talking about it," Nyssa's still laughing. "You were so silly! I remember you told me you were going to be a superhero who would save the world one day. You were going to get awesome powers, and have cool friends, and defeat evil. Then you tried to get Festus to bite you because you thought it was like _Spiderman_."

The car gets silent after that. Leo swallows, and tugs on his zipper.

"Hey," Nyssa pats Leo's leg. "It's going to be okay. Festus was getting old, and Dad was going to put her down anyway."

Leo's head spins. " _What?_ Like he should have anything to say about Festus. I don't remember him ever _feeding_ her, or _walking_ her. Screw that."

"True," Nyssa agrees. "But Festus was getting old. She lived longer than most, you know? Don't you remember when you got her? You were, maybe 6?"

"My mom gave her to me." Leo's voice cracks. "Festus was all I had left-"

"I _know_." Nyssa interrupts. Leo's a bit grateful because he doesn't want to finish his sentence. "You should remember her, is all I'm saying. You've been moping for weeks."

"Mmm."

"Leo."

"...I'll try."

"Good. Now, what are you feeling for dinner?"

* * *

Leo actually _does_ get sick- so sick he ends up puking in the middle of the night and his temperature practically triples.

Annabeth calls him that Saturday morning.

"Hello?"

"Leo! Where are you?"

"Home."

"Well get dressed and get over here! Don't you remember what today is?"

Leo pulls his covers over his head and groans. "No."

"The competition!"

Leo's face gets paler than it already is. "Fuck."

Annabeth makes a frustrated noise. "Should we wait for you or not? We're all piling into minivans right now at the school. I know you don't live far..."

"No," Leo sneezes. Mucus goes spraying over his bedsheet, and he inches away from it. "You guys should go. You also worked hard on the project. Also, I'm like, really sick."

Annabeth's quiet. It takes Leo 3 minutes of saying "Hello?" before he realizes she hanged up.

As he's about to roll over to fall asleep again, Annabeth calls again. "Sorry, that was my brother messing with my phone."

"Mmm."

"Anyway," Annabeth says slowly. "I told the rest of the club, and they said you should get some rest. We decided to name the project for you, though."

"What is it?"

"You'll see when you get better! And you better be in perfect health on Monday! Chop up some garlic, and swallow it with honey."

Leo gags, which is a mistake because he now has a thick wad of mucus swimming in his throat. He spits it out in the trashcan positioned nearby filled with dirty tissues. "That sounds disgusting."

"It does, but my mother showed me. The key is to swallow it, so you don't taste it. It works, trust me."

"I thought you didn't believe in bullshit voodoo magic?"

Annabeth laughs. "Leo, I've got to go. See you on Monday? We're working on plans to leave for the next year's team."

"Nice. See you then."

Before he can click the end button, there's a crackle. Then a chorus of teenagers yelling in a disconcerted mess: "GET WELL SOON LEO!" He also hears Shane mumbling and calling his immune system a pussy. The phone turns off, leaving Leo to wonder what the hell he just heard.

When he figures it out, he starts laughing. He laughs so hard that Harley starts knocking on the door to see if he's alright.

And he is. Leo is absolutely fine.

(Until the laughing makes him start coughing his lungs out.)

* * *

"Dude, are you going to New Rome?" Jason asks. He bites at his straw.

Leo makes an uncommitted noise. Piper sets her chin in her hand and chews on her French Fries slowly. "Y'know, Leo, you have to actually _accept_ their acceptance letter."

"What makes you think I was accepted?" Leo rolls his eyes. "They don't _know_ me."

"If _I_ got accepted, so did you," Piper says pointedly. Although that's hardly true- just because _she_ got in, didn't guarantee that _Leo_ got in. They were all very aware of this, so it's only wishful thinking on Piper's part.

"Whatever." Leo pokes at his grilled cheese. "Do you really want New Rome? I mean, weren't you accepted at other schools?"

"Yeah, totally." Piper pauses. "To both questions. I got Penn State and University of Arizona."

"Why the fuck would you go to Arizona? Only people from Arizona _go to Arizona_." Leo snorts.

"They have a good environment program." Piper leans on Jason's shoulder. "Mr. Scholar over here got accepted to Columbia."

"Holy _shit_ ," Leo stands up and claps. Piper joins in, and Jason sinks lower in his seat.

"Guys, stop it." Jason groans. "Seriously _stop_."

"Okay, okay." Leo sits back down. "But dude, you _have_ to be going to Columbia."

"Not sure. The journalism program looks really cool." Jason shrugs. "New Rome has the aero program, remember? And I get to stay close to home and you guys."

At that moment, Leo actually feels the physical urge to slap Jason. And then it hits him like a sense of deja vu, because _didn't he have a conversation with Travis about leaving the area_? Jason has _options_ and he wants to stay _here_? Jason is very much fucking _stupid_.

"So what schools were you accepted to?" Jason shifts the attention onto Leo swiftly.

Leo leans back. "Uh, a few. New Rome. One in California. Two in New York. I wasn't sure where the hell I was going back when I was applying."

"You _are_ going to New Rome though, right?" Piper brings the conversation back where it started. "It'll be so great. God, imagine if you and Jason were _roommates_? And I would sneak into your room and we'll have a lame ass college party.

"I guess."

Piper slaps her hands together to get rid of crumbs. "It'll be awesome."

Each clap of her hands makes Leo wince like a noose is tightening around his neck. The more he thinks about it, the more he _doesn't_ want to go to New Rome. He can literally go across the _country_.

Jason begins talking about this book he's reading, and Leo settles with staring at him and just listening. The rest of the night goes by peacefully.

He doesn't once mention the MIT letter sitting in his pocket.

* * *

It's the beginning of May when it finally hits Leo _he's a senior_. In a month, he wouldn't be able to prank Hedge, or bother Drew, or make a bet with the Stolls.

With the arrival of May comes Senior Events. It's a short list at CHB, compared to SPQR's but it's something Leo told himself to do. Jake went to all of his events, and Nyssa went to hers, except for her prom. Leo and Jake had accidentally slammed the door on her fingers just as she was leaving the house in her dress. Nyssa spent the rest of the night in the ER, with Clarisse bringing over alcohol.

Unfortunately, there's only one event, besides prom. Due to a lack of fundraising, there's only a Bonfire At The Beach, which normally ends up as an excuse to get drunk and roll around in the sand to old Taylor Swift music.

Leo used to joke with Piper about drowning themselves before graduation, so they could be teenagers forever.

Leo's sitting on the sidewalk, drawing with chalk on the floor with Harley. Harley got new chalk for his birthday a week ago, and it's been a week since he first asked Leo to draw with him.

Jason pulls up in his father's silver convertible with the windows down. Leo hasn't seen that car in _years_. Jason parks in between Piper and Leo's houses, so Leo doesn't know who Jason is actually picking up.

 _God_ , Leo can only imagine what it would be like to be picked up in a car like that, for a date with a boy like that. He thinks about Apollo and bites his lip.

"Yo, Leo!" Jason hops out of the seat and waves at Leo. "Aren't you coming?"

"I'm with Harley Quinn over here." Leo gestures with blue and pink covered hands. "Also where would I be going?"

"We're going prom shopping. Aren't you in the group chat?" Jason walks around the car and stands over the drawing of a monster that Harley was trying to create. "Hey, this is pretty cool. I never did chalk when I was a kid."

Honestly, Leo hasn't been in that group chat in months. He muted the notifications a while ago, after quickly figuring out that neither Jason nor Piper actually recognize when and where to send lovey-dovey messages to each other. It had nothing to do with the tightening in his stomach or the way Leo's fist would clench at every vibrate and _ding!_

"Yeah, yeah, cue sad childhood story about Daddy never loving you," Leo rolls his eyes and stands up. He dusts his hands on his jeans, leaving colorful lines across them. "I wasn't even going to prom."

"Wait- why not?" Jason glances towards Piper's door that's creaking open. His eyes widen and he looks more shocked than he probably should be. "It'll be stupid, but it's the last kind of stupid to hold on to."

"Hey, babe." Piper kisses Jason's cheek. "Hey, Leo. Are we going?"

Harley gasps. "Are you guys dating?"

"Didn't I tell you to get out of here?" Leo nudges the kid with his foot.

"No."

"Well, scat."

Harley snickers. "You want me to _poop-"_

"Other scat." Leo hits his face with his hand. "Sometimes I don't actually understand how you're real. You are a real kid who actually functions normally."

Harley sticks out his tongue and makes a move to slide his chalk over. He still lingers.

"You're going to prom, right?" Piper says after a beat.

"Wasn't planning to."

Jason makes a face. "Dude. If I have to suffer tux fittings, so do you."

Leo then makes a face. "I'm not rich enough to have a tux fit. I would just wear Jake's."

"Wasn't that a rental?" Jason squints through his glasses. Leo remembers 10th grade when Jason was so blind he had to squint to see his own nose. Leo would walk in front of him, if only to catch the briefest moment where Jason would collide into him, front against back, and hold Leo to steady himself, only to snap away and for Leo to joke about what a mole Jason is.

Leo shrugs. "I don't know. Maybe. Ain't going shopping with you."

"Leo," Jason pulls Leo away from Piper. He pleads with those big sky blue eyes of his. Leo can count every golden eyelash like a wish upon a star. "Do it for me? I can not take another day of being pulled around and giving fashion advice. That's _your_ job."

"I know. You give terrible advice. All you do is mumble 'It's good' and slouch in a chair." Leo steps back. "It's like you think the chair might actually suck you up."

"Exactly. That's why you have to come- Piper loves your advice! What the heck is the difference between Seashore Blue and Ocean Blue?"

These are very different shades of blue (seashore, nearly borderlining on blue-green, and ocean, a rich and dark blue) but Leo didn't expect Jason to know that. Hell, Leo doesn't actually know much about fashion- he just says what he thinks.

If it's stupid then it's stupid. Piper can take his honesty.

"I'll buy you a tux." Jason finally promises. "Or rent, whichever you prefer."

Money almost always is the trump card that Jason Grace does not often pull but when he does, it hits Leo hard.

Jason's rich, which is cool. Leo's not as rich and lives in a bigger family, which is also cool. Except when those two aspects combine, it just makes sense. Money _and_ family? Great.

However, being Jason's best friend doesn't immediately give Leo access to a black Amex. Jason doesn't like talking about money- for example, he purposefully buys cheap sneakers rather than getting the newest pair (and now that Leo thinks about it, Nico always has the newest sneakers which is hilarious).

"I _guess_ I could get a new suit," Leo says slowly.

"Tux."

"Whatever."

* * *

God, why the fuck did Leo even agree to such a stupid thing?

He's sitting in the corner, waiting for Piper to choose a dress. Next to him, Jason is searching on his phone for the nearest store for them to find tuxedos. Or suits. Whatever.

It's not the building heat pressing next to his thigh, but the vibrating in his pocket that irritates him. Leo checked his phone to see it was from Apollo, but he didn't want to risk anything with Curious Jason next to him.

"Hey, Leo," Piper calls out from the other side of the store. "Can you come here?"

While he's walking, Leo finally checks his phone.

 **3 [13:32]:** hey up for take out and movies ;)  
 **3 [13:32]:** i heard you like star wars  
 **3 [13:32]:** and the goonies  
 **3 [13:32]:** and back to the future  
 **3 [13:32]:** okay you like movies  
 **3 [13:33]:** but guess what i got? ;)  
 **ME: [13:33]:**?  
 **3 [13:33]:** all of the above baeb  
 **3 [13:33]:** wait crap i meant baeb  
 **3 [13:33]:** baeb  
 **3 [13:33]:** abbe  
 **3 [13:33]:** b a b e  
 **3 [13:34]:** anyway i got a bunch of movies come ovvvveeeer  
 **3 [13:34]:** pleeeeeeease  
 **ME [13:34]:** : i'm prom shopping  
 **3 [13:34]:** :o  
 **3 [13:35]:** wait when were you going to ask me out to prom  
 **3 [13:35]:** or do you want me to ask you out?  
 **3 [13:35]:** omg ok leo im going to ask you out to prom  
 **ME: [13:36]:** what  
 **3 [13:36]:** ok wait no  
 **3 [13:36]:** pretend i didn't say anything  
 **ME: [13:36]:** sure  
 **3 [13:37]:** okay, i love ya bye  
 **3 [13:37]:** wait what about the movies are u coming over

"Leo!" Leo's head snaps up at the sound of Piper's voice. Piper's exasperated, as she glances at Leo's phone. "Jeez, who are you talking to, your girlfriend?"

"I don't have a girlfriend." Leo slides his phone away. He thinks he has a boyfriend though. He's not entirely sure where he is with Apollo. They kiss a bunch and they go on sort-of-dates, but those dates can be easily seen as just hanging out. Maybe he should ask? No, that's stupid. But maybe he should? Though, if Apollo _does_ want to take him to prom (and Leo's stomach floods with dread and satisfaction and glee and nervous moths at the idea of taking his maybe-boyfriend to prom) than that definitely means they _are_ boyfriends.

" _Leo!_ " Piper hits his shoulder. "What's up with you?"

"Just thinking. Hey, that dress is cute."

Piper flushes, as she picks up the dress lying over her arm. "I wasn't sure. You really think yellow is a good choice?"

"Why wouldn't it be?" Leo touches the fabric. "You look good in anything." That's the truth, and Leo's response is spilling of jealousy.

Piper holds the dress to her body, skirt swaying and wrapping around her legs. "I was thinking this blue though..."

When Leo sees the blue dress, he bites his lip, because he knows that _Piper_ knows that the blue is the exact shade of Jason's eyes. And the dress is fucking gorgeous.

"Really?" Leo suppresses a shudder. "Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Piper's lip curls up softly. "It reminds me of Jason, right? Don't you see it?"

"Mhm." Leo doesn't also mention that the dress also matches _Piper's_ kaleidoscope eyes too because _isn't it all just absolutely perfect_? It's like Jason and Piper were made for each other, and some _stupid prom dress_ wanted to make it glaringly clear for Leo.

"I'm going to try it-" Piper pauses and sniffs the air. She leans in and sniffs Leo, even as he backs off and tries to step away.

"Uh-"

"Leo." Piper grabs a fistful of jacket. "Do you smoke?"

" _What-_ of course not." Leo snatches away and brushes out his clothes. He bumps into a clothing rack as he tries to create some distance between them. " Smoking's bad for you."

"Yeah, _I_ know that, but do you?" Piper covers her nose. "Were you standing near a smoker? Dude, you smell like a nicotine factory."

Leo inhales in his jacket. He doesn't smell much. And the only smoker he's been near is Calypso, a few days earlier. They went to the park to skip rocks and take pictures for Leo's photography project.

"Just don't smoke, okay? It's bad for you." Piper releases her nose and hugs the blue dress to herself.

"Yeah I know. I said that." Leo mutters. He starts walking back to Jason near the changing rooms. He doesn't feel much in the mood to do anything else.

"You're back." Jason's eyes follow him to his seat.

"I guess," Leo turns, with his leg up on the bench. "Found any places to go to?"

"Yeah, one." Jason holds his phone up. "It's like a three-minute walk, actually."

"Okay," Leo leans his head against the wall. "Text Piper that we're going over there. I just want to get this over with."

"Honestly? Same." Jason laughs, and begins moving his fingers across the screen.

* * *

"How does this look?" Leo opens the door and wiggles his eyebrows.

Jason smirks. "You definitely do not know how to put on a tie."

"No sir, no I do not." Leo salutes. He strides across the open space. "This is so stupid."

"No, you look good." Jason tries to reassure him. He holds Leo by the shoulders and gets to work on Leo's tie. "Let me fix this for you."

Leo's eyes reach Jason's inhales the smell of cologne, and the warmth and essence of Jason.

"You look good, _really_ good," Jason repeats over and over again, mumbling to himself as he dusts off Leo's shoulders and chest. For a quick second, they lock eyes and Leo forces himself to turn away. He can hear Jason swallow and shift around.

Jason steps back. "There. Now I'm a bit scared you're going to take Piper away from me."

Leo laughs so hard he grips his knees. _Him_? Taking Piper away from _Jason_?

"Don't count on that, buddy." Leo wipes at his eyes. He looks at himself in the mirror. He doesn't look special- more like an awkward six year old trying on their father's clothes. The legs are a bit too short, but the arms are a bit too long. A black tuxedo with a black tie.

Leo looks stupid, as he sits and waits for Jason.

"You think we should rent a limo or something?" Jason asks from behind a closed door. "And maybe go out to eat beforehand?"

"I don't care."

"Me neither, but Piper does. Girls, right?" Jason's voice gets muffled by rustling. He clears his throat. "So, are you taking a date?"

"I literally didn't think I was going until you showed up at my door this morning."

"But you have someone you would want, right?"

Leo doesn't answer. And then Jason steps out.

"Fuck," Leo mumbles, running a hand through his hair.

Jason fiddles with the tux jacket, nervously. "I don't look too bad, right?"

"Fuck no." Leo's insides hurt, as there's an entire zoo flying around his stomach. "I'm jealous. You might be the next James Bond."

Jason snorts and turns around to look at himself in the mirror. Leo hopes Jason doesn't see the moment when Leo's head drops down because he's thinking about how fucking amazing Jason actually is, and how nice the black fits against his body, and how wonderful his blue tie looks together.

Ohmygodohmygodohmygod, comes Leo's internal mantra.

"Alright," Jason says. "No wait, let me take a picture. I'll add it to my story, and Insta."

"Did you just say Insta?" Leo tries to make sure his words don't jumble up as he stands next to a literal god. He wants the imaginary gold dust of perfection to flutter off of Jason and fall against his own skin.

"Of course. Need to stay up on my game with all these cool, and new, 'hip' words." Jason has this mischevious look on his face. "Gotta keep things, _lit_."

"Oh my god," Leo's face is getting red from embarrassment and maybe their close proximity. "Never say that to my face ever again."

"I can dab instead."

"Please. _Don't_."

Jason slides his hands into his pocket. "Ha. You're going to the Bonfire, right?"

"Mmm. It's in like, two weeks, right?"

"Yeah."

"Maybe. Senior stuff is stupid. I don't even like the beach." Leo tries to undo his tie. "It's just rocks and water."

"And sand."

"This might amaze you, but sand is just tiny rocks."

Jason sighs. "If you need a ride, I can take you. But don't go if you don't want to. I heard about Festus."

"Did you now."

"Yeah, Drew was talking about it the other day," Jason says. "She said you were feeling like, uh, _shit_."

"Drew's a liar though. Remember when Piper got chicken pox and she told everyone that Piper had really bad cooties?" Leo sniggers.

Jason shifts to his other foot, cracking a smile. "No way. I didn't know that."

"Huh. I guess it was before we met you." Leo slides into a stall and begins unbuttoning his shirt. "Jeez, sometimes I forget we weren't all friends since forever."

"I guess. We met in what, middle school? Maybe a year before?"

Leo touches his forehead against the cool metal of the door. "Yeah. Dude, we're fucking old."

"No kidding." Jason agrees. "The other day, I saw that Finding Nemo is like 13 years old? I remember seeing that in the movies."

"Fa-Jesus." Leo slaps on his t-shirt and jeans. "You're old."

"So are you."

"We're old."

"Yeah, we kind of are." Jason knocks on the door. "Sucks, am I right?"

Leo pulls open the stall door. He's overshadowed by a towering Jason. "You have no idea."


	21. e (6)

**e**

Nico's front porch is the perfect place to lounge around on a Sunday morning. With an overhead, and plants blocking the beaming sun, everything is relatively cool and crisp. There's lemonade with melting ice cubes sitting on the corner of the table.

"It's so _hot_ ," Travis whines. He's sprawled out on the railing, limbs flying everywhere.

"Wait until it's summer." Rachel rolls her eyes, despite having a bead of sweat drip from her forehead. Her fingers poke along the tiny slits through the wooden boards of the porch.

Leo tilts his head back. "Did anyone do the math homework? There's a test tomorrow."

"No one takes your smart ass math, okay?"

"Shut up, Travis. I was talking to Rachel who's in my _class_."

Travis makes a groaning noise. "I wish Connor was here. He's totally cooler than all of you."

"You say that all the time, but then you always end up arguing with him afterward." Nico points out. He's sitting in a chair, going through his phone. Leo had thought Nico was listening to music, but he supposes Nico might've been listening the entire time.

The sound of heavy metal comes from nearly a block away. It's odd because it's definitely coming from the tiny pastel green Prius, but the music choice was not something the usual driver listened to. Leo's come to accept his Photography teacher, Persephone, as Nico's step-mother, so he's well aware that the Prius belongs to her.

It's when the door slams shut, and the trunk pops open when Leo gapes. Nico mumbles a curse.

"Yo, Nic- help me take the groceries in."

Leo stares at the business suit and slicked back hair and dark eyes. He slides next to Rachel to make room for the two males to pass by. He whispers in hushed tones, "Who is _that_?"

"Thanatos. Nico's older brother. Stepbrother." Rachel rolls her eyes. "He's cute but super rude and pretentious. One time, his family and mine went to a lake house and he-"

"Red." Thanatos points a finger at Rachel. "Get up and help."

"See?" Rachel grumbles as she staggers to her feet.

"You too, Tall Ass." Thanatos snaps his fingers at Travis who groans.

"Leave me _alone_." Travis looks away. After a few seconds, he finally groans again and swings across the railing to land on his feet.

"And you," Leo's head lifts up in response. Nico's stepbrother is scarily beautiful. "Curly Head. I don't know you, but you're here so get to steppin'."

Leo only moves because this man might be hot, but his glare _burns_. Leo jogs to the car to take out grocery bags. He can see Thanatos sitting in Nico's chair and drinking the rest of the lemonade.

It's when Leo's already at the car when he notices the girl passing out the grocery bags.

"Hey, I know you," Leo says, arms falling to his sides awkwardly.

The girl smiles-Ruby? Sapphire? Her name is a gem, Leo thinks- and nods. Pearl? Diamond?

"Yeah. You're Leo, right?" She nods and hands Leo a bag.

Leo fakes a grin and struggles to come up with a name. "And you're-" It finally hits. "- Hazel, right? You go to SPQR." Not. A. Gem.

"Yep. And you go to CHB, right?"

"Yeah," Leo frowns. "Wait, are you Thanatos' girlfriend?"

Hazel starts to giggle. "That's my _brother_. We're all step-siblings."

"Nico doesn't talk about you guys very much," Leo says. He very faintly remembers his first visit to Nico's house, where he claimed to be an only child. Leo's not sure why- his siblings seem okay. Leo's been told he has an oddly good relationship with his own siblings, so maybe it's something other people do? But no that can't be right- because while Piper and Drew don't like each other, they would never straight up _deny_ each other. Though maybe there's some kind of story behind Nico's denial?

Hazel shrugs. "He doesn't like admitting we're family, but he's very protective. You _had_ to see the look on his face when Frank asked me out-"

"Hazel!" Both Leo and Hazel turn around to see Nico standing with a pink face. "Bags, please."

"Sorry." Hazel's quiet, passing bags to the waiting teenager. When Nico leaves, she continues talking. "Anyway, he doesn't like being seen with any of us. But I don't really mind."

"That's cool-"

"Curly Head! Where are those carrots? Do I need to go over there to show you how it's done?"

Hazel begins to giggle, as Leo goes sprinting. He very much would _not_ like for Thanatos to come over and _show him how it's done_.

It's a week before prom, and every girl Leo knows is a bit worried.

He doesn't even want to think about the hot mess that Drew is right now. Instead, he deals with Rachel's nervousness.

"So the plan?" Travis asks again, clearly amused.

"I'm going to tell my father Good Night, right? Then Drew is going to come over and pick me up at around 9, and I'll just hop out my window. Then we're going to eat, and we'll go to prom." Rachel combs her fingers through her hair and gnaws at her bottom lip. "At around maybe 1, Drew would drive me back home, and I'll climb back in my room, disposing of evidence."

Travis places his head in his hand. "You do know you're on the fourth floor, right?"

"There's a _tree_."

"Wait," Leo puts his hand up. "You have _four_ floors?"

"Five." Travis clarifies before Rachel. "If you count the basement with the pool table. Her house is cool, she has a pretty big pool and stuff."

"You have a _pool?_ " Leo blinks. "What the _fuck_?"

"Her daddy's rich and stuff." Travis ignores Rachel's glaring. "She has like, every single Pokemon card in _existence_."

"Dude."

"Right? I think she also has a jet or something, but also _every single Pokemon card_."

" _Dude_."

Rachel chops the conversation with a swift: "Leave me alone. I told you to stop talking about it."

Travis rolls his eyes and leans into Leo. "She's been to every continent," he whispers with a grin.

"Travis shut the hell up." Rachel slaps his arm with the back of her hand. She eyes Leo and Travis carefully. "You guys are going to prom, right?"

"I'm being forced," Leo folds his arms and leans back in his chair.

"Uh, yeah, same." Travis nods.

"Leo!" Rachel leans on the table, a glint in her eye. She reminds Leo scarily of Drew when the girl is up to no good. Yikes. "Are you going with someone? Anyone special?"

Leo shrugs. It's Thursday, and prom is next Saturday, and no one has asked him yet. Leo's a bit nervous for Apollo's grand gesture, but no signs of it have seemed to come yet.

"Nah," he decides, cooly.

" _Oh_ ," Rachel makes the word much more exaggerated than it needed to be. She turns to Travis. "So _Travis_ , are _you_ going to prom with someone?"

God.

"Um," Travis gets really quiet. "Am _I?_ "

"I don't know." Rachel snickers. " _Are you_?"

"Shut up."

Rachel snorts. She turns back to her homework, the real reason why they were at the library. "Maybe you should make a move, Trav. Y'know, before it's too late."

"Maybe you could shut the fuck up. Y'know, before it's too late."

Rachel taps her pencil against her notebook. "I'm just saying, Trav. A lot can happen if you confess. Right, Leo?"

Leo pushes his stuff away and shifts his chair over. "Leave me out of this."

"Yeah," Travis' lips fall into a straight line. "Leave him out of this."

Rachel just gives a knowing smile.

It's Drew who picks him up, for some reason.

"Get in, loser," She says when knocking on the door. "We're going shopping."

I don't want to go shopping with you." Leo rolls his eyes. "What's up?"

"Beach. Seniors. Let's go." Drew leans on the doorway. Her v-neck is a bit deep- not that Leo minds.

He hums softly. "So? I kinda don't like the water. Remember when I drowned in the pool and your mom gave me CPR?"

"Who cares?" Drew glances at her phone. "You have ten minutes to put on some shorts and get your butt into my car."

Leo groans, because if he's not out in ten minutes, Drew will storm back into the house and start complaining. He brushes by Harley, who's excited to see Drew at the door, and spins into his room.

When he gets back, Harley is having an enthusiastic conversation with Drew.

"Stop talking to my friends, you little weirdo." Leo pushes Harley away with his leg. "Go hang out with your girlfriend and her twin or whatever."

"She's not my girlfriend!" Harley stomps. He pauses and leans on Leo's hip. "Is Drew _your_ girlfriend?"

"Hell no." Both Drew and Leo say at the same time. It's not very convincing, sending Harley running through the house screaming about Leo's new girlfriend.

Drew drives slowly, with pop music filtering in. Leo's shorts aren't long, leaving the underside of his thighs sticking to the car seat. Drew has to pull her hair up into a bun and fan herself with one hand. Her sunglasses show the sun about to set in its reflection.

"Sorry," Drew mumbles through glossy pink lips. "The AC is broken, and it's really hot today."

"You should send it to the workshop. Jake can fix that up for you real quick."

"Uh huh. Okay, I guess."

Leo falls back in his chair, and watches Drew quietly. When she's driving, she's peaceful and calm. With her hair blowing slightly from the window rolled down, and the sun hitting her at just the right angle, Drew looks beautiful. Not that she wasn't already beautiful, but it's really something else.

Her high-waisted shorts stop mid-thigh, with long hairless legs leading towards red sneakers. Leo wonders if she'll get cold, or if she'll jump in the water. He doubts it.

God, if someone as pretty as Drew was _his_ girlfriend, Leo wouldn't know what to do. He would worry- worry so much about anything and everything that he would be so caught up in his gut-wrenching fear of someone leaving him, that his partner would _actually_ leave him.

Leo supposes this is one of the reasons why he's never asked Jason out.

What if he asked Drew out instead? What would she do? What if Leo leaned over _right now,_ and grabbed her face and kissed her with all the force in his body until she's leaning against the window, and tugging at his hair?

"Quit staring and get out, Valdez." Drew's eyes can't be seen from her sunglasses. Her big star-shaped hoop earrings jingle.

"You wish I was staring." Leo tosses back at her.

"Maybe," Drew links her arm in his. "You're not bad arm candy. But I'm into someone else, hon."

"Bless their soul," Leo leads them along the boardwalk towards the beach. He can see a crowd of teenagers huddled together. When Drew presses into Leo, he frowns. "Are you cold?"

"No." She lies.

"Damn." Leo stops them and takes off his sweater. The coolness hits into him like a wall, but after a few seconds, Leo recognizes that it's nothing he can't handle. He drapes his sweater over Drew.

"Thanks," Drew pulls her hair out from under the clothing, and zips it up halfway. The sweater fits kind of nicely- it's a bit scary that they're around the same size because Leo is _tiny_. He's taller than Drew by a few inches though. They link arms again.

"Why'd you pick me up?" Leo finally asks as they near their classmates. Their class is relatively small, only around 130, maybe 140 at the very most. Only about half of them actually showed up. Leo's heard of different alternative parties, although ones for people who only want to invite their like, 4 friends or something. This is the cool party, that Leo's going to- school sponsored or not.

Drew leans into his ear. "Piper and Jason already left. They figured you would want to drive yourself, but must've forgot you can barely drive. They wanted to give you space or something."

"Hmm." Leo smiles as he's welcomed into the group.

"Yo, Leo!" That's Jason calling him over, from his crouch near the giant pile of wood. "Can you help us light this?"

Leo and Drew stroll towards the pit. "None of you thought to bring a lighter?"

"Dude," Jason stands up. "Just light it."

Leo's lighter is in his back pocket, which he flicks open. In a few minutes, the flames start to breathe its own life and consume the wood greedily. Everyone steps back from the massive and cozy amount of heat.

There's a teacher staring disapprovingly at Leo's lighter. At second glance, Leo recognizes it as Hera, his guidance counselor. He ducks his head and steers away from her.

"Hey," Jason's holding two cups, and passes one to Leo. "Oh, sorry, didn't know you're with Drew."

"I'm not." Leo unhooks his arm from hers. "She just dropped me off."

"Oh okay," Jason nods. He sticks his hand in his pocket. "It's cool you have a lighter- I think a science teacher just ran out to get some matches."

"Imagine his face when he comes back to see a fire bigger than his house." Leo tilts his cup up. Red solo cups- how dumb. However, there's a rush in Leo's veins because maybe this _will_ be the high school party Leo's heard about since he was a kid. Maybe these plastic red cups are filled to the brim with alcohol and everyone will get drunk and run around naked. Leo takes a sip.

It's Coke.

Jason laughs, oblivious to the running commentary in Leo's head. Somewhere, there's someone playing music from a giant speaker.

Jason disappears shortly after that, which Leo hardly notices until he's gone, and Leo's talking to no one. For lack of better things to do, Leo hikes his way to his glaring guidance counselor.

"You."

"Leo." Hera's lips curl into a stern and subtle smile. "I hope you're not into any illegal activities with that lighter of yours."

"Nah," Leo crumples up his cup. "Just got it from a friend."

"You know, it's safer with matches." Hera continues.

"It's safer if there's not a bunch of kids in the dark too."

"True," Hera agrees. Her hair is undone and floods over her shoulders. She's wearing a loose-fitting white blouse and blue jeans. Leo stares at her navy blue painted toes peeking out of her sandals. "That better be a kid-friendly beverage."

"It is." Leo frowns. He crosses his arms. "How many other teachers are here?"

"Four others." Hera mirrors Leo's movements and crosses her own arms. She turns her head to fully face Leo. The light casts odd shadows across her face. "How are you, Leo?"

"Good. Can't wait to graduate." Leo admits to her.

Hera nods as if she was expecting that answer. "Graduation's in a few weeks. Have plans for after summer?"

"Uh, college?" Leo rolls his eyes. "I'm not rich enough to take a gap year."

"It's nice you're going to college. You'd be amazed by how many of your classmates aren't." Her eyes scan through the teenagers farther off. Leo wasn't sure how she was supposed to be supervising from all the way over here, but now as he looks over the crowd, Leo can see everyone.

He sees Annabeth singing loudly with her boyfriend, who managed to sneak in. She has a red Cornell sweatshirt and shorts. Leo can see Drew picking at a cupcake while talking to a friend. Leo can even see Clovis, laying in the sand, peacefully undisturbed despite lying next to the speaker.

Hera clears her throat. "Do you know what college?"

Leo tells her. Her smile shines brightly, and she says something along the lines of _Good Luck_. Leo slips away after that, grin covering his face.

"Annabeth? What's good?" Leo bumps into the girl, after reaching for his third drink of the night.

Annabeth smiles and waves. "Nothing much. Percy wants to go skinny dipping."

Leo winks. " _Ooh_."

"He's a dork," Annabeth snorts but her face is still aglow with love. Leo's jealous of the sparkles in her eyes as shining stars reflect in her pupils. "But a cute dork."

"Seems nice."

"Yeah," Annabeth sighs. She then perks up. "Did we ever tell you the news? It was supposed to be a surprise but I'm really excited."

"What news? Who is _we_?" Leo blinks, before squinting at Annabeth's stomach. "You're not pregnant, are you?"

"What- no!" Annabeth jerks away, hugging her body. "Ha, no, I meant for the Robotics team. We got 2nd place!" She whoops loudly, pulling Leo around to dance happily in a circle.

"Ha ha!" Leo laughs. "That's awesome!"

"Yep!" Annabeth stops their little Ring-Around-The-Rosie and lets out a giant and breathless giggle. "I'm so happy- we haven't gotten a trophy in years."

"Since Beckendorf?"

"Since Beckendorf." Annabeth sobers up, pulling out her phone. "Oh my God, you should've been there! Look, I have pictures."

She shows Leo a picture of the entire team (there's only 6 of them including Leo). Leo hadn't known that Clovis had actually been a part of the Robotics team, but he should've expected it based off of the creative ideas and willingness he had to help people out.

There's a picture of them all with medals, and Annabeth holding the moderately sized trophy. In another picture, Shane is holding a sign that says LEO GET BETTER YOU LITTLE-and the next word is crossed out.

In another picture, there's just the poster board explaining how to help disabled kids with their project sitting next to the trophy. In bright and bold lettering says-

"Fuck," Leo stares at the picture. "Is that-"

"Festus." Annabeth stands straight, and her eyes shine with pride. "It was Rachel and Drew's idea. Drew explained what happened, and we all felt terrible for not understanding. So they went digging around for a picture of you and Festus when you were a kid to blow up and put on the board. It's Rachel's handwriting, by the way."

"I'm-" Leo hugs Annabeth tighter than he ever thought he could. " _Jesus_."

"You're apart of the team, man." Annabeth punches his arm lightly. "Besides, it was your idea to use some old designs. None of us would've been at that competition if it wasn't for you."

"Thanks." Leo smiles earnestly. He feels like his heart might explode- but in a good way. "Seriously."

Annabeth nods. "We were going to give you the board and your medal, but Shane was supposed to be designing shirts. You were going to have Co-Captain on yours, even if it _was_ only for a year."

"Co-captain," Leo repeats. "But I thought that you were-"

Annabeth waves him off. "Titles are just names. It doesn't mean much in a group of 6."

Leo hugs her again. "Thanks. Again."

"You've _got_ to stop thanking me," Annabeth laughs. "This was all you. You're freaking amazing, Leo."

He nearly cries.

Apollo calls Leo, and it's a pleasant surprise. He's by the drinks, staring at the juice boxes someone brought as a joke. They have Sesame Street characters along the side.

"Hey."

"Leo! What's up?"

Leo bites his straw. "This apple juice tastes really fake. It's sad they pump this shit into kids all day."

"Yikes. Hey, where are you right now? I'm near your house but I don't want to drive all the way to find out that you're not even there."

"Wait- hold on." Leo can only hear parts of Apollo's conversation. "I'm going to move away from all this."

Leo slips away from the party, careful to avoid any rocks sticking out. He sits on one of the bigger rocks and folds up his legs. "Alright."

"Where are you?" Apollo asks again. "What are you getting away from? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I'm at the beach." Leo glances back towards the bonfire. He can still hear people singing along to song lyrics and see them raising their hands in the air. "It's a school thing, y'know? Didn't you graduate from CHB?"

"Hmm, I think I remember what you're talking about." Apollo's voice sounds calmer. "There's music, right? Shitty pop songs from the early 2000s."

"Yeah," Leo smirks. "Don't forget the Spice Girls and TLC."

On Apollo's end, Leo can hear the radio turning louder. Leo puts his phone on speakerphone, rather wanting to listen to the chill music coming from Apollo's end, than the old Lady Gaga classics. (Not that Leo didn't love Paparazzi- the song is definitely one of his favorite shower jams.)

"And couples are dancing-"

"-And swaying." Leo continues for him.

"And there's smore's and drinks being passed around-"

"- And cupcakes-"

"-And the night is lit up with stars, and the sea looks dark yet calm-"

"-And everything feels perfect."

"Yeah," Apollo laughs softly. "I think I remember what you're talking about."

And in that moment, Leo wishes Apollo wasn't driving and wished that he was here, so Leo could kiss him. Instead, Leo hugs himself and smiles. "Yeah."

Apollo's quiet for a second. "I'm gonna see if I can sneak onto the beach, okay? I've got a surprise."

"It's not a surprise if I already know what it is." Leo's 99% sure this is Apollo's promposal to him. He would be lying if he didn't say he was excited.

"Shhh!" Apollo makes a wild shushing noise. "It's a _surprise._ "

"Okay," Leo holds his phone again. "See you later?"

"In a few. Bye, Leo."

"Bye."

Leo stays sitting on the rock, staring out into the ocean. Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, Southern. Atlantic. Pacific. Indian. Arctic. Southern. If Leo looks up, he can see a few constellations. There's Virgo, Centaurus, Crux-

"Leo."

"Holy _shit!"_ Leo goes sliding off the rock, landing on the sand with a giant _oomph_! He looks up, only to see Jason peeking his head. Piper's head peeks too, a mischievous grin spread across her face.

"Hey."

"Dude, you can't just sneak up on people like that!" Leo scowls at Jason since it's his voice that scared him. "Nearly gave me a heart attack, bro."

"Sorry," Jason says sheepishly, not looking very sorry. Around his neck are several glow-in-the-dark necklaces of various shades of green and yellow. Someone must've passed them out, because Piper has purple and blue in her hair, around her neck, and on her arms. "Thought you heard us coming."

"Gimme one." Leo yanks on Piper's necklace. She pulls away and waves a couple of Glow-in-the-dark sticks for Leo to crack. They burst into reds and oranges. "Aw, sweet."

"Yeah, there's a lot back there." Piper thumbs towards the bonfire. "Why're you out here by yourself?"

"Just wanted to breathe. Tired of smelling sweat and ash." Leo says.

"That's funny-" Jason is actually going to say what Leo thinks he's going to say, "-cause you always smell like sweat and ash."

"Are you talking shit, Grace?"

"Am I?"

Piper has a tiny book bag- the useless kind that is only big enough to fit makeup and a couple of chip bags- which she brings to her front. "Guess what I got?"

Leo snatches the bottle away before Piper can officially announce it. He ducks behind the big rock, staying at a position where he can't be seen from the bonfire. "Nice stuff, where'd you get it?"

Piper shrugs. "Some twins or something. Starts with an S? Anyway, they sell stuff around school sometimes."

"Stolls?"

"Maybe? Sounds familiar." Piper slides down with Leo. She pats the sand for Jason to join them. "Though drinking at a school party is-"

"Dumb." Leo passes the bottle back. "We shouldn't."

"Even if it's one of our last nights." Piper trails on.

Leo looks over to Jason- the resident parent out of the three of them. Jason shrugs. "I'm gonna miss high school too, you know."

"I mean," Leo's going over the facts. He should stay sober for Apollo, whose bound to come around any second now. "We can get caught so easily..."

"Yeah." Piper continues.

"Oh my God, just drink it already." Jason pinches the bridge of his nose, amusement spreading over his face.

Leo and Piper are in no rush to drink the bottle's contents.

"I feel pretty good," Leo sways softly. He unfolds his legs and leans his head on Piper's shoulder. "'m just really tired."

"Me too." Piper agrees. She rubs his hand in hers. "Can't wait to leave this town."

"You're not even going anywhere," Leo says before it's too late. The words bubble out of him like a volcano. He hardly notices Jason's widening eyes. "You're jus' going to New Rome, which is like- like how far away? Really close."

"I know," Piper says without a beat. "But you guys will be there. And Drew's going to art school-"

"Congrats." Leo interrupts with a burp. "But I don't think-"

"I don't know. I-D-K." Piper actually says IDK out loud. She hiccups and lurches forward. "God, I think I need some water around now."

Piper stumbles up and tries finding her way back to the bonfire. Leo's about to follow her when there's a hand on his arm. Right. Jason.

"Let's go somewhere." Jason's eyes are alit with mischief and untold fun. "Let's ditch Piper for a bit, and hang out, y'know? Like old times."

"Jesus, Jay." Leo leans against Jason's chest, regardless. "I'm not leaving your clingy ass just yet."

Jason pulls him into the darkness, and like a moth to a flame, Leo follows along.

Because with the way Leo's entire body warms, how could he possibly say no?

Some part of Leo thinks Jason knows this. And Jason would be right.

When Jason said those words, with his eyes glowing with love for Leo- Leo feels ready to take over the world.

And the world he will take.


	22. a (3)

**a**

Everything is perfect.

They're running around while laughing to themselves. Leo nearly trips and hits the sand one too many times, but he doesn't care because he feels _free_. There's wind smacking into his face, and Jason's grip in his hand, and his tummy feels like it's on fire and whirling with every possible emotion he's ever needed to feel.

"Ha!" Jason laughs, finally pulling Leo close against rocks. Leo doesn't even know where they are anymore. "Watch your step."

They're near a rocky formation, somewhere along where the boardwalk curves off the sand, and goes into the water. The boardwalk creaks from above them, it's long wooden supports making excellent grips for Leo to avoid slipping on slippery rocks.

"Jay," Leo giggles, feeling very loose and comfortable. "Where are we?"

"Sh," Jason whispers. He opens his arms for Leo to jump to, from one rock to another. "Jump over here."

They slowly make their careful way through the rocks and further underneath the boardwalk. It's at the end, where Leo and Jason collapse with exhaustion, when Leo sees it. "Holy shit."

"Yeah," Jason agrees, with a dreamy sigh.

From their position, they can see where the sky touches the sea, as the moon sends a shimmering pathway of light across the water. On the right, there's the carnival on the boardwalk, Ferris Wheel slowly spinning, bright lights flashing. On the left is the bonfire, where only the tips of the flames licking the sky can be seen in between rocks. And above, through the cracks of wood- is the entire universe at their fingertips.

"How'd you even find this place?" Leo's feet kick at the water. His reflection in the water appears oddly, distorting the colors of everything in their little cove of protection.

"When I was little, sometimes Thalia would take me to the beach, and we would play around." Jason skips a pebble in the water. It skips 4 times, before plopping down to the ocean floor. "One day, she hid so well that I started crying. And then she would come out of here and tell me everything's okay."

"Wow," Leo takes off one of his glow-in-the-dark necklaces and drags it through the water. Red streaks underneath, the hoop being large enough for a tiny fish to swim through. "I remember Jake used to do that kind of thing with me and Nyssa. Nyssa would always act too old to play games but she would be the first one to freak out, causing me to cry."

"Yeah."

Jason hops off his rock and slides into the water. It only reaches his knees. He waddles over to Leo's rock and leans against it. "You want to take a swim? I haven't been to the beach in forever."

Leo eyes the rocky sand underneath Jason's toes. "I'd rather not break anything."

"We'll just swim out to more open waters, right?"

Leo didn't really have an opposition, he just wanted to see Jason plead more. Leo stretches, back cracking, and peels off his shirt. "Okay. But we gotta be hardcore about it, y'know?"

"Are you _stripping_?"

Leo stands up. His pants unbutton and his shorts fly down. Jason lets out a low whistle as Leo jumps into the water, limbs flailing.

"Wow," Jason snorts, pulling his wet shirt off. Leo turns away, swimming out towards the ocean, and away from the rocks. He's alone in the waters until he hears Jason paddling out towards him. Jason still has his necklaces on, with his neck streaked with lightning as he makes his way out to Leo.

"Jay?" Leo splashes at Jason when the blond's leg accidentally slides against his. The feeling is sudden and weird, so Leo splashes violently. "Jason!"

"Heh, sorry." Jason splashes Leo back.

"Really? Is that what you want to do?" Leo slaps against the water, making a mini-tsunami of salt water hit Jason.

Through soaking hair, Jason's blue eyes glint. "Is that what you want to do now? Take _this!"_

Let the water games begin.

* * *

Jason stretches his limbs out like a cat, trying to dry out his clothes. His button-down hangs undone, and his shorts are back on. Leo forgot he had a tattoo, black ink stretching over Jason's arm.

Leo's in a similar state, with both his shirt and pants on, and his hair being left as a sopping mess. It flops over his forehead, leaving stinging trails of saltwater to fall into his eyes.

"I'm going to miss this stuff." Jason finally says as they're walking back to the bonfire. His fingers tremble due to shivering. Jason finally stops, plopping in the sand. "I'm going to miss this beach and this place."

Leo falls down with him, close enough that their arms barely brush each other. "You're going to New Rome, right? You can always come back."

"Leo," Jason turns to look at him, Leo's red and orange necklaces reflecting strangely in his eyes. "You and I both know that we're not going to New Rome."

Jason's finally said it, and the sound of the words being piled up so neatly in a sentence stuns Leo. It's the weight of Leo's entire life of friendship buckling down on him like the weight of an anchor- but it's also the relief of letting go, as his own thoughts slide out of his mind.

Jason turns away. Leo lets out a deep breath.

From where they are, Leo can barely see the figures in the distance sitting around the campfire. He can barely hear them singing _Kumbaya, My Lord, Kumbaya_.

"Leo," Jason says again. "You know where you're going, right?"

"Yeah. You?"

"Mhm."

Silence again. It's Leo's turn to talk. He shifts his entire body, angling it more towards Jason. "Have you told Piper?"

"Have _you?"_

That shuts Leo up. Jason rolls his eyes and runs a hand through his hair. "Listen, Leo, I really like Piper. I think I might even lov-" His voice cuts off, which is good because Leo doesn't want to hear what he has to say anyway. "Yeah. I just can't tell her that we're not going to be near each other."

"No, I understand." Leo's body is quivering with suppressed emotion. "But at the same time..."

Jason nods- not even needing words to speak for himself. Leo sighs and rests his hands on his knees. "At least you and Piper found each other."

Jason lowers his eyes. "I guess. Though I still feel like, maybe if I _hadn't_ kissed her that day, none of this drama would be happening. You wouldn't have been so weird, and we would probably be just talking shit out."

 _You have no idea_. Leo is _certain_ that most of this year would not have happened if Jason and Piper hadn't gotten together. He could see what _could've_ been them: if Jason and Piper had just stuffed their feelings inside like Leo did instead of selfishly releasing those emotions into the world.

"Maybe," Leo says instead. "You think everything would be alright if you didn't ask Piper?"

Jason pauses. He turns to fully face Leo. His unwavering look makes Leo feel very nervous and jolty.

"Leo," Jason says, clearer than the lack of expression on his face. Clearer than the blue of his eyes, clearer than his pale skin, clearer than the deep and crisp voice that comes out of Jason Grace every time he decides to gift Leo with the opportunity to _hear his voice_. "Do you like Piper?"

Leo bursts out laughing. He's guffawing at an amount that will begin to hurt his stomach, and creep into his lungs and heart because _Leo liking Piper?_ It's hilarious how wrong Jason can be, and yet _so_ close to something else entirely.

"Leo?" Jason's face is a bit red. "Leo? Why are you laughing?"

"Because it's funny!" Leo holds his stomach and coughs violently. "God, Jason, I'm fucking _gay_."

"What."

The wide-eyed look on Jason's face, makes Leo stop laughing and sober up immediately. _God, Jason, I'm fucking gay_. GodJasonI'mfuckinggay. godjasonimfuckinggayimfuckinggayimfuckinggay. Leo's heartbeat catches, as he's cautious of what his best friend might say.

 _Anything_. Jason could literally say anything, and Leo wouldn't hate him. Leo's _pleading_ for Jason to say something, so Leo will know whether he should start packing now, or stay. Just something. _Anything_.

"Jason-"

"You like guys?" Jason's eyebrows furrow. His hand rubs his wrist, and his tongue flicks out to lick his lips. "That's not possible."

" _Jason_ -"

"No- wait that came out weird," Jason's eyes avert from Leo's and down the ground. "Don't think I hate gay people. I'm okay with that. Just, _jeez_ , Leo- tell a guy beforehand, y'know?"

Leo takes a deep breath. This is. This is good. This is something he can work on. Leo senses Jason's discomfort and initial shock, but it's. It's something.

Leo hangs his head and shifts to get up. "Sorry, I should just-"

"Leo." Jason grabs his hand. He gives Leo an easy (albeit, cautious) smile. "Sorry. I just definitely didn't expect it. I thought you had a thing for my girlfriend and for Drew."

"No," Leo says softly. "I definitely do not have a thing for Piper. Drew's cool, though."

Jason fakes a gasp. He's trying to bring back normalcy, Leo registers. Back when Drew was yucky and when they can talk about _anything_. "I thought you hated Drew."

"No," Leo decides. He still thinks everything's going too fast- Leo literally just spilled one of his bigger secrets, and Jason doesn't have anything to say about it. Leo _thought_ the pressure would disappear, but rather than a balloon popping in relief, Leo feels the problem slowly inflating more and more. "Drew's cool and hot."

"So you like Drew?" Jason raises an eyebrow. "But you just said you like guys-"

"I don't _know_." Leo runs a trembling hand through his hair. "I think I like both, okay? Fuck, Jason, _how can you be so calm_ when I'm _literally freaking out!_ "

Jason keeps his hands in his lap. "I thought you wouldn't want to talk about it right now. We can talk about it, if you want."

Leo screams in frustration. He stands up, walks towards the ocean and yells at the world for a solid 3 minutes.

When he gets back, Leo drops with his legs crossed and a slightly calmer mindset.

"Do you want to talk about it, because I'll talk about it," Leo's words are coming through his mouth so fast, that he's barely registering a word he's saying. "Jason fucking Grace, if you want to talk about who and _what_ I like, then let's go ahead."

"Leo, are you okay-"

"No!" Leo throws his hands in the air. "I just told you I like _boys_ and you're _okay_ with it? The guy I've been having sleepovers with since we were _10_ , is fucking _okay_ with it?"

Jason's eyes don't reach Leo's when he's done with his mini-rant. Jason waits until Leo catches his breath until speaking. "I'm not entirely okay with it. You should've told me earlier. You're my best friend, man."

Leo slumps against the sand. His anger and frustration seep out of his body until he feels limp. Something about this feels very wrong but he can't just say something. Wouldn't that make things worse? "I know."

Jason's quiet for a moment, before asking his next question: "Have you always- have you always been, y'know, gay?"

Leo sits up. He feels a tsunami of exhaustion overcome his limbs. "I don't know. Maybe."

"Oh." Jason fiddles with his shirt. He's buttoning it up now. "But you think Drew is hot? How does that work?"

Leo sighs. "I don't _know_ , Jason. How the fuck did you think Piper was hot? Hot people are hot people."

"Yeah but you-" Jason stops himself and shakes his head as if to shake off his trail of thought. "How'd you figure it out?"

"Figure what?" Leo actually looks at Jason, only to find blue eyes staring intensely at him. His breathing grows shallower.

Jason awkwardly scratches his neck, as his face slowly grows red. "That you like guys..."

Leo sucks in a breath. This is the question that Leo very much _knows_ the answer to but he _can't_. Leo's phone vibrates in his pocket, and he wants to answer it to get away, but at the same time, he can't because Jason would be suspicious and-

"Leo?"

And that's when Leo gives up. He gives up entirely because he's _so tired of everything_ and he just wants it all to be over. He surges forward, tilts his head, and kisses Jason Grace.

Leo presses his lips against Jason's firm ones, moving slowly and in his own time. His fingers curl in the sand because Jason tastes like saltwater and faintly of Coke.

It seems to take forever, but Jason shoves him back a few seconds later and stares at Leo with wide eyes.

"What the _hell_ ," Jason swallows, and crawls back. He gets to his feet and looks down at Leo, face contorted in some kind of way that Leo doesn't understand. "Leo. What the _fuck_?"

Jason Grace jogs back to the bonfire- the one Leo forgot most of his class was at, leaving Leo Valdez to sit in the sand alone.

Leo can feel his heart beating out of his chest, because not only did he manage to kiss the love of his life, but he gets rejected in one of the most painful ways that he's imagined. He can only dream to be swept away by the water that'll encompass his body and steal him away into the inkiness of night.

With tears stinging in his eyes, Leo stumbles up to his feet. For the first time in a _long_ time (and the feeling is too familiar and welcomes him back with opening arms), Leo runs.

* * *

His foot slides across something slippery, causing Leo to slip and slam his arm into a rock. He cries out in pain and bites his lip because his arm doesn't feel very useful after that.

With one hand, Leo crawls his way into the tiny hole Jason showed him. The safe space they had did nothing for him and feels so cold and lonely without the blond. He fell in the icy water a few times, causing his body to shiver violently. Leo's hand reaches for his lighter, to flick the switch several times before a tiny flame erupts. It's not very helpful but it dimly lights up his surroundings.

Leo resists the urge to throw up when he sees the contorted way his arm is. He closes the lighter, and hugs himself instead.

Why would he do that? He wants the world to wipe away, he wants _today_ to wipe away.

He wishes he had never agreed to Drew's insistence that he should come. He wished he had never become friends with Jason because, _God_ , if Leo wasn't best friends with Jason this would have never happened. He would've never been _stupid_ enough to talk to Jason or to kiss him on the beach.

Leo can already imagine what'll happen when Jason got back to their classmates. He'd tell Piper, whose shrieking will attract Drew's attention. And Drew will tell everyone, and soon everyone will know.

Leo Valdez is gay and kissed Jason Grace.

Leo screams into his legs, letting hot tears drip down to warm him. He can't do this he can't do this hecan'tdothis.

The water is so close- Leo is so close. He can lay back and be taken away, somewhere too far for anyone to reach him. Or maybe he'll start sinking, and he won't be able to swim back up with only one good arm, and then maybe then he'll be okay.

It's nearly half an hour later when he hears people calling his name. Leo's sure it's a dream- the figures that stand so far away, shrouded in light, are angels sent to collect and take him away.

"Leo!"

The bright light blinds him, and he thinks it's funny that God has a sweater that looks exactly like his own.

"Oh my _God,_ Leo!" The figure he assumed to be God is actually Drew, who's standing on the edge of the sand, not sure to come closer. The phone in her hand trembles, sending the flashlight all over the cove. There's someone else with her.

Apollo.

Apollo gets on his hands and knees to get to Leo. He carefully navigates through rocks and water, to pull Leo close to him. "It's gonna be okay, alright? I got you." Apollo whispers into his ear, patting Leo's head.

Apollo's strong enough to carry Leo back to where Drew is. Drew yanks off her sweater- his sweater, Leo's sleepy mind supplies- and wraps it around the shivering teen. Leo can't hear what she's saying, but she's freaking out at him. He can feel her Sprite flavored breath freezing his cheek, and her fingers digging into his arm.

Apollo's warm, Leo realizes. So warm.

Leo closes his eyes, not sure when he'll open them again.

He's doesn't think he would want to open them ever again.


	23. l (4)

**l**

It's a sort of cave. His covers hook over his head like his own private bubble of cotton and thread.

Leo figures this is what it'll be like to be in space. Dark, suffocating and lonely. Underneath his head, his pillow is wet with sweat, tears, and mucus.

There's a queasiness in his stomach. There's a knot there- tied so tight around Leo's insides that it physically hurts, as it's thick rope coils around his chest. It's not just his chest, but his head is pounding, and he feels weak.

Time moves slowly, and Leo is being left behind, where he'll rot of selfishness and self-pity.


	24. back to the beginning

**a/n: purposefully past tense**

* * *

When Leo Valdez first met Jason Grace, he wanted to slap the kid.

Leo had been helping Nyssa babysit Harley in the park. Harley had only been two-and-a-half and was running around everywhere trying to pick up who knows what. Leo, excited to finally be the big brother for once, followed Harley everywhere.

"No!" Leo slapped Harley's hand gently. "No sticks!"

Harley giggled and tried getting up the stairs to the slide. Leo had to hold his hand along the way.

"Don't go too far," Nyssa called out. She was sitting with Harley's mom, talking about girly things that Leo didn't care about.

"We won't listen to her," Leo whispered to Harley. He went up the final step, waiting for Harley's stubby legs to catch up. "What does she know anyway, she won't even give me back my GameBoy- Hey, move it, will ya?"

"Move it, will ya!" Harley repeated and kicked the boy crouched at the top of the slide.

"No." He was about the same age as Leo, and just as stubborn. He stuck out his tongue and held tightly to both sides of the yellow slide. "I'm hiding here. Go the other way."

Leo was not amused. He started to tap his foot- something Nyssa had gotten into the habit of when she was annoyed with Leo. "Well, hurry up. I want to go down."

"Shut up and leave me alone."

Leo started to push the kid with both hands. " _Move it!_ "

 _"No!"_ The blond persisted, yelling and kicking when Leo tried moving him. "I'm playing here!"

"You can't just block the slide," Leo kicked his back. Harley concentrated to the best he could, using his small hands to push at the other boy.

Blue eyes closed as the kid hung onto the slide for dear life. "Stop it! _Stop it!_ "

Leo crouched. He narrowed his eyes and glared. "Get off, or I'll step on your fingers."

The boy was barely hanging to the edge by the tips of his fingers. From the chest and below, the rest of his body was gone from Leo's vision, as it curved into the emptiness of slide heaven. Blue eyes glared as they called Leo's bluff. "You wouldn't."

Leo actually didn't- instead, he used his own hands to pry the fingers away. Unfortunately, the other boy was just as smart, and held onto Leo's hands, pulling him along for the ride. He only heard Harley's hesitant _Leo?_ as he was pulled into the curves and darkness of slide.

He and the other kid come tumbling out in a heap under the burning sun.

Leo was quick to pull himself together, despite the stinging in his knee. "You jerk!"

"You're the jerk!" The other accused, trying to fix his clothes. Now that Leo had the chance to look at him, the other boy was wearing a Captain America shirt, one very much similar to the mini one Harley had.

Harley... Leo gasped, as he looked up only to have Harley sprawling out of the slide and onto the floor with a giant splat. Leo saw the exact moment when his head hit the safety mat.

Harley sat up, tilted his head back and started bawling his eyes out.

"Aw," the boy winced, causing Leo to fume.

"Shut up! This is your fault!" Leo stomped over to the other boy. He pushed him, the blond stumbling back. "If you had gone down the _stupid_ slide, then me and Harley would've went at the same time-"

"Leo, calm down." Nyssa grabbed his hand before it could go flying. Harley's mother bent over to pick Harley up and comfort him. "What happened?"

"He wouldn't go down the slide!" Leo cried, pointing at the boy that was the cause of it all.

The boy, however, flushed and shoved Leo. "I told you to leave me alone-"

"Hey, hey!" An out of breath woman in business clothes jerked the kid away from Leo. "What did I tell you about running off, young man?"

"Don't do it..." He mumbled and cast his head down. The woman's lips pressed together, and she pulled at his ear and whispered something to him. The boy's face only grew redder.

"Leo," Nyssa pulled at his attention. "What did you do?"

"I didn't do anything," Leo pouted and folded his arms. " _He_ started it."

"I'm so sorry, Ma'am," Nyssa apologized to the stressed-out woman, kicking Leo's leg. "I'm sure, Leo didn't mean to do anything to your kid."

The woman straightened, the cold attitude not just directed at the little boy, but also towards Leo and Nyssa. "It's fine. I'm sure the little brat didn't mean anything. Did you, Jason?"

"No." The other boy- Jason- muttered.

Nyssa looked unsettled by the way she talked to Jason but didn't say anything. Leo stuck his tongue out until Nyssa slapped at the back of his head. "Tell Jason that you're sorry." She warned.

Leo definitely did not want to tell Jason he was sorry, but he also knew he should. He dragged his feet until he stood in front of Jason. Leo pushed his hands into his pocket, trying to act like the cool one in the situation. "Sorry for pushing you."

Jason was an inch shorter than him. He tilted his head up. "It's okay."

Nyssa's focus swung back to the woman, trying to explain Leo's lack of social skills. "I'm seriously sorry, Ma'am, Leo doesn't have lots of friends, and the ones he does have are all girls-"

"Hey!" Leo's face went hot. "Stop saying that."

"Same with Jason," The woman let out a sigh between wine-colored lips. "He's not my son, though- he's my boss's son, and his father... worries about him sometimes. Every day, Jason's sister drops him off at my office after school, because he has nowhere else to go."

Jason gave out a tiny bark of laughter and tugged on the woman's arm. " _Ms. Juno..._ "

Nyssa looked at the kid, feeling a hint of compassion for him. "Maybe you should try getting him a nanny."

The other female frowned. "He has one. But the old woman isn't nearly as good as a friend."

"Hmm." Nyssa looked over at Leo. "Maybe we should set up a playdate. It'll be nice if Leo had more friends like himself. Though- do they even call it a playdate at their age-"

"No way! _Nyssa!_ " Leo ran from the scene until he caught up with Harley and his mom. At least _they_ weren't the ones forcing him to be friends with a jerk named Jason.

Harley's mom was sitting in the grass, watching Harley try to do a cartwheel. When Leo came near, she smiled softly.

"Hello, Leo." She slid her feet closer to her body. "We should be going back to your house soon."

"Finally." Leo sprawled out on the ground. Harley soon crept over, bringing his face over Leo's before jerking away with a giggle every couple of seconds. Leo hooked his arm around Harley's waist to keep him from leaving. "Stupid, Nyssa, I have tons of friends. Right, Harley?"

"Leo." Harley nodded and whined to escape. "Lemme go." His grabby arms reached for his mom, who looked on with amusement.

"Yeah," Leo laid back down, with his arms folded behind his head. "That's what I thought."

* * *

"It's cool you have a dog," 12-year old Jason tugged on Festus' leash. The excitable dog was hard to control, but Jason somehow was good at controlling her for the most part. Leo didn't care- Festus could be as free as she wanted to be as long as she doesn't poop in his room.

"Yeah," Leo stuck his arms out as he walked on the bridge railing. He balanced carelessly, one foot in front of the other. "It was my mom's dog, and now she's mine. Nyssa said we might give her up for adoption though."

"That sucks," Jason commented. He ducked when a leaf came dangerously close to his hair. Leo snorted because Jason is _ridiculous_. Jason spiked up his hair with the gallon of grease already gluing his blond hair together. "Stop laughing at me."

"Can't help it. Your hair is as tall as an _actual_ child." Leo took another step. "Watch out, buddy, gotta be this tall to enter."

"That doesn't even make sense."

" _You_ don't make sense."

Jason watched as Leo tripped over his own footing. "You should really get off of there."

"Shut up, mom."

"You _wish_ I was your mom."

Leo folded his hands behind his head. "Your mom is hot. Can't believe she used to be your dad's secretary- your dad definitely knows how to choose them."

"Juno's not my mom." Jason puffed out his cheeks. "She just hangs around a lot."

"Totally hot though."

Jason groaned. "Stop talking about her like that."

"Whatever, man. Ever heard Stacy's Mom?"

Jason gagged. He kicked a rock, only for Festus to start kicking it around herself. Jason sighed and stomped on some leaves. "You think I can make it on the basketball team? I'm going to try out next week."

"Skinny little white kid like you?" Leo rolled his eyes. "No way. You're going to die out there."

Jason dug into his pockets to throw a salt packet at Leo. "Shut _up_. Remember when you tried out for softball and they told you that you would do better on the _girls_ ' team?"

"Have you even _seen_ Drew pitch? So I take that as a _compliment_ , thank you very much." Leo hummed the Wilderness school chant. "You're pretty good at basketball though. Not like, Dylan good but kinda good."

"Gee, thanks. I'll tell you if I make it, though." Jason paused. "Hey, guess what."

"What?"

"Thalia is quitting college. She's gonna go into the military or the Air Force."

Leo looked over at Jason. His eyes were trained on the pathway in front of them. Underneath the bridge, many _many_ feet below was the rushing water heading downstream. Leo didn't know where that lead. Maybe a crackhouse- Leo heard of one of those on the other side of town. Exciting. "Isn't she scared of heights?"

"I don't know, maybe." Jason shrugged. He zipped up his jacket when a cool breeze came along. "Aren't you cold?"

"No way," Leo was kinda cold. His Adidas sweatshirt and jacket didn't do much to protect him from the elements, but he could deal. "You're a wimp."

" _I'm_ a wimp?" Jason said loudly, like the idea of the word being applied to Jason was impossible. "You're the wimp."

"No, _you_ are." Leo kicked his foot at Jason. He danced across the railing. "You're some real chicken shit, Jason."

Jason waved his hands at the feet, to avoid it from hitting his face. "Leo, heh, calm down."

"Yeah, yeah, I will-" Leo's foot slipped across the railing, "Shit _JaSON-_ "

"Whoa!" Jason lurched forward, grabbing Leo's hand before he could fall and crash into the stream below. Leo's body swung violently into the bridge. It slammed into the wood with a sickening thud. "Leo are you okay?"

"Dude, stop talking." Leo coughed. He stared at the rushing water below his feet. It would definitely hurt if Jason were to drop him. Leo groaned and grabbed his chest. "Why am I always the one getting hurt?"

"Cause you do stupid stuff," Jason grunted. He adjusted his position against the rail and stuck his other hand out for Leo. "Can you grab my other hand from there? I really don't want to kill you right now."

 _"Feeling's mutual buddy."_ Leo looked up to see where the offered hand was. For a second, his breath was taken away, because the sun was positioned so beautifully behind Jason's head, that it's like Jason was Leo's personal angel. Leo swallowed and reached up.

His fingers grasped at Jason's and Jason let out a relieved sigh and tried to pull. After a few strained tugs, Leo was barely over the railing, but he was high enough to lift himself up and over.

The two boys collapsed on the ground, breathing hard.

"Leo," Jason gasped out and turned his head to the other. "Why do you do stupid shit?"

Leo couldn't even answer because his heart was trying to calm itself for two reasons. One, he might've just fallen into the icy river if it wasn't for Jason. Two, _Jason_. He ignored the last reason.

"We've got to find Festus," Leo finally said. He rubbed his stomach. "Crazy dog."

"Get's it from you." Jason had enough energy to sit up. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah," Leo grunted. "Why?"

Jason crept closer. "You keep touching yourself. Lemme see your stomach- take off your shirt"

"That's what she said."

 _"Leo."_

Jason fumbled with Leo's sweatshirt. Leo knew the exact moment when Jason touched his stomach because he jolted and groaned.

 _"Ow."_ Leo leaned on his elbows and tried to peer down at his body. His stomach was a bit red, and it hurt when Jason prodded at it, but Leo was sure he was fine. "Stop touching it."

"Sorry." Jason gave him an uneasy smile. He took out his phone from his pocket. "I'm going to call your sister before she worries about us getting kidnapped or something."

"Ugh. Nyssa is just going to yell at us." Leo groaned and set his head back down. He closed his eyes and listened to Jason's side of the phone call, and the occasional yelling loud enough to be heard from the speaker.

"It's fine," Jason finished the phone call and gave Leo a sloppy smile. "She's coming. Just try not to move too much, 'kay?"

Leo bit his lip instead of answering because, beneath the growing pain in his stomach, there's something in the very pit of his being that sparked like a tiny flame.

Oh God.

* * *

Leo had let out a groan the same time as Jason's victory whoop. He shut his DS and slumped to the ground as Jason snickered.

"What's that, 10-1? _Who_ was the one who said they were undefeated? Who was the one-"

"Shut the fuck up, Grace," Leo muttered from his pile of self-pity on the floor. "You cheated."

 _"Sure."_ Jason rolled his eyes and nudged Leo's body with his foot. "Let's get some more cake."

"I don't want any." Leo sat up. He stretched his arms forward, palms facing outwards. "Is it possible to have too much sugar?"

"For you? Nah." Jason kicked Leo's foot. "Come on, I want more cake."

"You're a big boy, get it yourself."

Jason pulled on his infamous puppy dog look. "Your brother already thinks I steal all your food, so he won't let me in the kitchen without you."

"Fine." Leo stood up like he hadn't already planned to go with Jason anyway. "Only cause you kicked my ass in Cooking Mama. But when I get Gardening Mama, you're gonna be eating my victory dirt."

"Yeah yeah," Jason tossed over his shoulder. "The only thing I want to be eating is birthday cake."

"It's _my_ birthday, but you've ate like half of my cake." Leo glared. "Fatass."

"It's _everyone's_ cake." Jason ignored Leo. He strode through Leo's kitchen like it was _his_ kitchen. Jason poked his head in the freezer. "It's ice cream cake. Really good stuff."

"You don't even like strawberry ice cream." Leo sat on the counter. The stove blinked the time at him. 12:07. It's not his birthday anymore, the glamour of finally being 15 long faded with the blowing out of candles a few hours earlier.

Jason so generously helped himself to a giant slice of cake. Leo stares at the metal spoon sticking out of crumb covered pink lips. He licked his lips.

"Wait- nevermind, give me some." Leo changed his mind. Jason is only slightly annoyed at having to take the box out again but does so.

"Y'know," Jason licked his spoon. "School's gonna start soon."

"Yeah, and you're transferring soon." Leo grinned. "Still can't believe you went to SPQR. Was it as snotty as I told you it was?"

"It wasn't that bad. It was pretty cool actually." Jason shrugged. "Some of the people there are awesome."

"Yeah, _sure_." Leo did not want to hear about SPQR. He missed out on one of his best friends, all throughout freshman year, and it _sucked_. While Piper was still his best friend, it's _different_. "You missed me being a loser on Mathletes. If I see another permutation I'm gonna kill myself."

"Aw, you missed me." Jason had this stupid look on his face, "And maybe you should _subtract_ yourself from the Mathletes."

"One, I did _not_ miss your lame ass," His face burned hot, and his heart gave a half-hearted squeeze because Leo most definitely _did_ miss Jason's lame ass. Leo ignored his body and threw his spoon at Jason. "Two, you're a joke."

"My jokes are a _sin_. Or is it a co-sin?"

" _'Sin_ ' is pronounced _sign_. Also, shut the fuck _up_." Leo couldn't ignore the twitch of his lips. He jumped off the counter to grab his spoon back.

Jason got the spoon first and slid it away from Leo.

"Dude."

Jason just grinned at him. He put down his own bowl and stepped away from Leo. "What?"

"Give it back." Leo was very aware of the drawer of spoons to the left of his hip, but he was even more painfully aware of his own grin and beating heart. "It's _my_ birthday."

"Technically it's not-" Jason pointed the spoon towards the time on the microwave, "-you turned 15 yesterday."

"You know what I mean." Leo made a grab towards the spoon. Jason expected this and kept his arm stretched out.

"Fine." Leo snatched Jason's bowl before the other realized what was happening. "Guess I'll eat with my hands then."

"Leo _don't-_ "

Leo stuck his finger in the cake, and pulled it out, leaving a deep hole in the slice. His finger was cold from the ice cream and streaked with red and white frosting. "What?" He said, mocking the tone Jason previously had.

"Gross," Jason snickered. "Don't touch me."

Leo reached to swipe his finger across Jason's face, but Jason grabbed his hand before any saccharine delight could reach flesh. Jason's long fingers wrapped around Leo's wrist firmly, which sent warmth through Leo's body. All he felt were good feelings, all from a single point of contact. His body was a heater that only Jason had the remote for.

"Watch it, Valdez," Jason warned, though either boy could see that it wasn't very threatening. "Ha, you're so short now!"

"Die, you spoon stealing fiend." Leo laughed.

"Fiend, what a big word. CHB must be teaching you so much." Jason laughed too. "Can't wait to get back to school with you."

"Yeah, yeah." Leo pulled his hand away. "Right back at you. Can I get my spoon back?"

Leo held out his hand, and Jason pressed the utensil into his palm. Jason's nose crinkled at the sight of his cake-with-a-hole. "Y'know there were more spoons. Wasted perfectly good food."

"Whatever. Your dad should let you eat more sugar, cause you're weird about it." Leo rolled his eyes. He moved away to dump the food in the trash.

"It's fine, 'cause I can always come here and eat sugar with you."

"Like a drug dealer."

"Yep. Exactly like that." Jason smirked at Leo. "Can't live without that sugar rush."

"You're dumb, Jason."

"No, _you're_ dumb."

"No, _you_ are."

"Nuh-uh."

"You bitch. You totally are."

"No way, Jose."

In the ridiculousness of it all, with the two of them arguing, with Jason being stupidly dumb and cute, with the frosting on Jason's cheek, with the crumpled pajamas, with the stupid light flickering on because Jake found them laughing in the kitchen at 2 AM- that was.

That was the moment when Leo realized he loves Jason.


	25. o (3)

**a/n: i'm in the process of making apollo younger. i'm older than when i first wrote this (16... i was maybe 14-15 so it's honestly not even THAT older lmao) but since i'm closer to leo's age (17 nearly 18 by the end of the fic), it just reminds me how weird it would be for me to date someone that age... i'm gonna make apollo a 21 year old, but like, a** _ **new**_ **21 yr old, so the age gap is more 18/21 than 18/24. there's obviously still a gap, but like, it's the best way to make it more comfortable and keep the story the same.**

 **anyway. there are only two more chapters after this one! :)**

* * *

 **o**

Leo ultimately has no choice but to get up. His stomach growls meaning he's hungry but he personally doesn't have much of an appetite. He feels hungry but doesn't want to eat.

"Glad you're up." Jake nods at him from the table. He acts like everything is okay even though it's not. The sound of cereal hitting the ceramic bowl irritates Leo to the point where Leo bangs his head on the fridge.

He can hear Jake crunching, crunching, crunching up all that wheat, all that milk, all that sugar, all that useless garbage. Who gave him the _right_ to-

"Leo." Nyssa pulls him away from the fridge. She gently pries Leo's fingers from the handle- she's treating him so delicately, like a fragile flower or a broken person ready to shatter- and gives his fingers a soft tug. "You're going to hurt yourself."

Leo gives out a grunt and gestures with his left arm. The splint on his arm made for uncomfortable and jerky motions.

"Are you hungry?" Nyssa asks after setting out some pans. "I'm going to make some eggs."

"How come I don't get eggs, Nys?" Jake complains. He has a milk mustache though it's not as fun as it normally would be. Leo is a bit disgusted. "Gimme the eggs! Make me eggs!"

Nyssa says something. The words fly off too quickly for Leo to catch, and it's too long and advanced for Leo to bother with. Jake's face falls and he scrunches his nose. He clicks his brakes off and rolls towards the kitchen doorway.

"Your eggs aren't even that good." Jake childishly tosses at her.

Nyssa has her hand on her hip. "You're a grown man."

"You suck." Jake groans, and laughs when Nyssa's eyebrow quirks up. He then gives Leo an uneasy smile, before leaving. "Hang in there, champ."

Leo disregards that and sits at the table. He only watches Nyssa's movements with little interest as she navigates through the kitchen, hands flying everywhere. The spatula falls without her realizing. It's something they all share, Leo notes. A nervous energy that fucks up everything around them.

"Tell me, Leo. Apple or chocolate chip?" Nyssa is mixing a bowl of pancake mix. Sweat beads on her forehead. Her red bandana is good at keeping her hair back except for a tiny stray that's continuously pushed back over and over again. "Also what type of flowers do you want to buy for later this afternoon?"

He puts his head down.

"Both?" Nyssa bites her lip. Leo doesn't have to see her- he already knows she's biting her lip because _he_ bites his lip all the time. "Maybe I should make two batches? And I'm thinking dahlias again? I think there's a Mother's Day sale at the flower shop."

She's talking to herself at this point. It's a confusion of two different topics for conversations that she's having with herself. "Or just the chocolate chip and have apples on the side?"

He wants her to stop talking. Stop talking. Stoptalking. Stoptalkingstop. "Or maybe just apple pancakes with chocolate drizzled on top-"

" _Okay_." Leo snaps. "I don't _care_." He looks up in time for Nyssa's eye to twitch and for the slight bit of discomfort to reveal itself on her face until she spins back to the stove.

"Fine," She violently beats the batter. "That's fine too."

Leo feels relieved only for the regret to flood over just as quickly. But why should he care? It's not like he did anything to her. It's not like _her_ world was ending. Nyssa's not _Leo,_ she doesn't understand.

Leo thinks he might've closed his eyes for only a second, only to be jolted up when a plate hits the table, and there's a cup of hot chocolate in front of him. Nyssa taps her foot by the run-down object they call a coffee machine.

"How are they?" She finally says.

The pancakes melt in Leo's mouth, but the eggs have too much pepper. But Leo doesn't say this because he doesn't really taste it. He definitely _does_ but he also _doesn't_. His body is automatically shoveling food into his mouth, albeit at a slower pace than usual, but not to curb his hunger but to control the growling and insatiable monster that's ripping his stomach to shreds. So yeah, Leo doesn't say anything about the food.

"Can you answer me for once?" Nyssa pours the coffee into her mug. "It's rude."

Leo stops chewing. "It's fine."

"What's wrong with you?" Nyssa presses her hand against his forehead. Leo knows she can't tell anything from doing that because there's nothing physically wrong with Leo except the fact that he's a fuck up. "Do I need to call Piper?"

Oh, Piper. God, fucking _Piper_. Leo hasn't thought once about her. He's ruined her life- imagine how _stupid_ she must feel! Her best friend is a fucking loser who kisses her boyfriend! Her fucked-up and stupid loser of a best friend is in love with her boyfriend and doesn't give a _shit_ about her! Fucking. Piper.

"No," Leo mumbles. His head falls to the table, fork clattering out of his hand. "I'm so fucking stupid."

"Hey," Nyssa lifts his head with her hands. Her eyes are trying to probe its way inside of him- to see all that he is inside. Maybe- just _maybe_ , she will see the coward cowering in nothingness. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Leo's good hand weakly curls around her wrist to pull her hand away. "I'm fine."

"You are _not_ fine." Nyssa pulls her chair to sit across from Leo. Her fingers tug at Leo's own. "You can talk to me you know."

"It's nothing." His chest heaves, because suddenly Nyssa is close- too close and there's not enough space to breathe. "I just want to sleep."

"You slept all yesterday," Nyssa states, and it's a bit shakening to Leo that he did not remember the last 24 hours too clearly. He was mentally aware that it's Sunday, and that he was on the beach on Friday, but Saturday was a bit of a dream.

He had gotten home from the hospital late in the morning. Leo remembers drifting around the house like he was mourning. He remembers crying. He remembers staring at his walls and ceiling in silence. He remembers sleeping at some point but he does not remember sleeping most of the day away.

The Sleep was too comfortable. It's the pull of a Warm Embrace. Sleep opened Leo and welcomed him in. It helped him. He would gladly go back to Sleep again. The timeless type of rest where everything is okay and he remembers nothing but floating away. Leo would willingly sleep That Sleep for a million of years, only to wake up a new person. It'll be so _perfect_.

"So?" Leo accuses. "It's not going to hurt anyone. What do you know, anyway?"

" _Leo_ ," Nyssa shakes him by the shoulders. "You're not okay right now, and I really need you to be. I _need_ you to be okay right now. I need to know you're okay."

"Stop it." He pushes her hands away. "Stop it."

"God, Leo." Nyssa rubs her hands on her face. "We're supposed to go to the cemetery, but I'm not taking you if you're not okay. I really don't want to deal with all this."

"I don't want to deal with you!" Leo jerks out of his seat. "Stop treating me like this!"

"I want to but you're being a child!" Nyssa scolds. She jumps out of her seat too. "How are we supposed to see our moms if you won't even look at me?!"

"What are you even _talking_ about?" Leo backs away. "Stop yelling at me!"

"For _fuck's sake_ Leo!" Nyssa throws her hands at him. She cursed at him, and as startling as it is, the words only cause Leo's blood to boil more. "It's _Mother's Day!_ Every year we go to the cemetery, but I can't handle it by myself! I just- I just can't- God, do you think _I_ want to do it alone? Do you think that I can even _see_ my mom without you? Except you're freaking out on me and I can't do anything!"

"Just go by yourself!" Leo screams at her. "You don't _need_ me! No one here needs me! I can't fucking be here without messing shit up- _fuck_ \- I can't even be cool with my own sister! I don't want to do this with you!"

"Suck it up, Leo!" Nyssa says. "Stop acting like such a brat and _listen_ to people! Everything isn't always about you-"

"Is it okay if I eat this?" Their heads swing to the table, where Harley's poking at Leo's plate. Leo hardly realized when he came in, and he doubts Nyssa noticed either. "Also stop screaming cause you're really loud. Holly said she could hear you over the phone."

Nyssa blinks at him and takes a deep breath. Leo exhales a beat before her. He shrugs and pushes the plate to Harley. "Have at it. Wasn't hungry anyway."

Nyssa pours out more coffee for herself. Her eyes stare at a spot on the floor.

If she has nothing to say to Leo, then he has nothing to say to her.

He rushes out without a thought.

* * *

School is okay.

He ends up skipping the classes he shares with either Jason or Piper. Calypso doesn't say anything whenever he joins her.

In the time he spends skipping, no matter how many tries he gives it, Leo figures out that smoking isn't for him. Calypso makes a comment about how it isn't really for _anyone_ but people do it.

Curiously, he also ends up avoiding his other friends. There's no sight of StollsNicoRachel. Leo thinks he prefers this.

He would go the rest of his life like this if he could. Skip & Smoke, and dying while trying. Calypso doesn't mind the silent company so neither does he.

School is okay.

* * *

It's Wednesday when Leo freaks out at lunch.

He had been skipping it for the past few days, mainly because he didn't feel too hungry. But he felt cramps all morning and knew he needed to eat today.

Leo's on the lunchline when someone bumps into him.

"Whoa, sorry man." The guy says. He looked familiar, some tall kid with a small goatee. He balances on his crutches and adjusts his bag. "Hey, wait a minute- you're that kid from the beach!"

Leo tenses. "So what if I am?"

The kid snaps his fingers, in thought. "You, uh, kissed that other guy- uh, Mason? No, it's, uh, Jason? Jason! You kissed Jason!"

Leo picks up his tray and inputs his ID number to buy lunch. " _So?_ "

"Nothing, man." The other male hops forward on his crutches, following Leo towards the utensils. "That's just how I know you. You're the Kid Who Kissed Jason."

It's stupid and it means nothing, but the statement makes Leo drop his tray. It clatters on the floor, sending a hot dog sliding across the floor, and soda spreading as a grape flavored abyss across the floor.

The guy leans to peer at the mess. "Dude-"

Leo couldn't hear the rest of what he said. He's already running.

He finds himself catching his breath in the bathroom. Leo locks the stall and leans against the door. A shaky breath sends him to sitting on the toilet staring at the 4 walls surrounding him. Trapping him.

 _Ms. Dodds is a bitch._ Someone wrote it next to the toilet paper in red ink. _You're a bitch_ , was the response. Next to that was: _You're Dodd's bitch_.

Leo breathes in and out slowly. He's fine. He shouldn't have run out like that. There was no reason to run- he just _did_. Okay, breathe in and breathe out. He's fine now.

The door to the bathroom creaks open, and there are two boys walking in.

"-Leo ran out in the cafeteria." That's Connor's voice. "You think he's okay?"

Leo pulls up his feet and puts his school bag on the hook of the stall door.

"Someone locked the stall." That's Travis, not that Leo expected anyone else. "I need to piss."

"Just go underneath it."

"Gross."

Leo hears unbuckling. "Why'd you even follow me to the bathroom? Pervert."

Connor turns on the sink. "I'm just worried about Leo. Thought you would understand."

Travis makes a weird noise from the back of his throat. "I mean, dude, _of course_ I understand, but that Grace guy is kinda a dick, don't cha think? Like, he forcefully outed Leo. Wouldn't you be all freaky if you got outed like that?"

Through the cracks of the door, Leo can see Connor making faces at himself in the mirror. _Valentina is a whore_ reads the wall to Leo's right. _Valentina is hot_ is scrawled nearby in thick black sharpie.

"Dunno," Connor's poking at a pimple now. "Not gay."

"Don't think anyone really knows until they _know_." Travis pushes Connor out the way to reach for the soap. "Gross, spit soap. Think Neko still has the pomegranate hand sanitizer crap?"

"You're really gay."

"I'm fucking _clean_." Travis shakes his hands at Connor so water flies at him. For a second, Leo thinks Connor can see him through the crack of the door. Then the sophomore is laughing and shoving Travis out the bathroom.

Leo sighs and drops his feet down. In the corner of the door, there's a faded and somewhat scratched-out message proclaiming to the world that _Michael Yew & Lee Fletcher are fag buddies_. Leo's almost positive that Michael killed himself a few years ago. It was this whole gay thing that exploded before Leo could enter high school. Before Leo even knew Jason.

Jake probably knew him. Probably made fun of him too- isn't it always the people closest to you who react so violently? Isn't it always the best people who end up revealing the worst sides of them?

Leo's bag swings side to side, when his knee hits the door. It's the heavy pendulum of a grandfather clock, ticking away to his doom.

Tick, tock.

* * *

Leo throws his bag down and collapses on his bed. His phone vibrates at the same time.

 **3 [18:34]:** leo valdez  
 **ME [18:34]:** what  
 **3 [18:34]:** are u home  
 **ME [18:34]:** why  
 **3 [18:35]:** cause i want to show you something  
 **ME [18:35]:** not in the mood  
 **3 [18:35]:** can u be in the mood?  
 **ME [18:35]:** stop  
 **3 [18:36]:** okay  
 **3 [18:36]:** ...  
 **3 [18:36]:** leo  
 **ME [18:37]:** what  
 **3 [18:37]:** please tell me you like queen b  
 **ME [18:37]:** what

Then Leo hears it. Fucking Beyonce playing outside.

 _Honey honey  
I can see the stars all the way from here_

"Oh my God." Leo groans, and runs down the stairs to go to the front of his house.

 _Can't you see the glow on the window pane  
I can feel the sun whenever you're near  
Every time you touch me I just melt away_

He slams open the door, to find Apollo staring at a window holding a giant ass stereo. His shirt has PROM? on it in giant block letters. There's a bunch of roses and sunflowers all over the ground and a big stuffed dinosaur.

 _Now everybody asks me why I'm smiling out from ear to ear  
But I know  
Nothing's perfect but it's worth it  
After fighting through my tears and finally you put me first_

"Oh my God," Leo repeats. Apollo turns to him and frowns.

 _Baby, it's you  
You're the one I love  
You're the one I need  
You're the only one I see_

"I thought that was your bedroom!" Apollo yells over the music and points with one hand to the room that wasn't Leo's. "And it was supposed to rain around now!"

" _Oh my God!_ " Leo yells back. "You were serenading my little brother!"

" _Oh my God!_ " Apollo screams. "I'm serenading you!"

"I know! Oh my _God!_ " Leo jogs to Apollo. "I didn't know you liked Beyonce."

"Who doesn't?" Apollo lowers the stereo. "Do _you_ like Beyonce?"

"Yes," Leo kisses Apollo's cheek. "But I also like _you_."

Apollo beams. "So is that a yes?"

"Hmm," Leo takes a step back. "Let me think about it..."

Apollo loops an arm around Leo's waist and pulls him in close. "We both know you're going to say yes." He leans over so his forehead barely touches Leo's.

"If you really want to go to my high school prom then go ahead." Leo wants to duck away because it was all a bit too much but he doesn't. He's going to cry because everything has been going so _wrong_ that Leo doesn't deserve this. He doesn't deserve Apollo. Instead, he closes his eyes. "I don't mind."

He kind of does, but he's not going to tell Apollo that.

"I got you a giant teddy bear. Er, teddy dino." Apollo whispers onto Leo's lips. "Cause when you squeeze it, it'll say rawr."

"Rawr."

"And rawr," Apollo's breathing slows. "Is I love you in dinosaur."

Leo opens his eyes. "Are you-"

"Yeah." Apollo bents his neck so his face falls into Leo's collarbone. "I think I love you."

"Oh." Leo doesn't know what to say. The song has already ended and a new song has begun. It's by Avril Lavigne, something pulled from the very depths of her albums that it is nearly unrecognizable.

"Do you think that you-" Apollo stops, and sighs instead.

Leo's honest. "I don't know." He thinks he could though. Love Apollo, that is. But it won't be anytime soon. But someday, if possible.

"Leo!"

Leo looks up to see Jake and Nyssa on the porch. He hadn't even known Jake was home and thought Nyssa was in the shower. Jake's head is cocked to the side, and Nyssa's holding the landline phone.

"Damn," Leo mumbles. "You should probably go."

"Yeah," Apollo pulls away. He doesn't look particularly happy but also not particularly upset. Dreamy, maybe. In curious thought. Leo hopes that he didn't do anything wrong. He hopes that he didn't ruin anything again.

It starts to rain as Apollo pulls his sunshine car out of the driveway, leaving Leo with a giant plush dinosaur. It smells like Apollo's apartment. Leo kneels down to collect a few of the scattered flowers before they get dirtied from mud.

"Come over here lover boy!" Jake hollers at him. Nyssa turns on her heel and walks back in the house. Right. She's not exactly talking to him.

Jake holds out his arm to block Leo from going inside the house. "Ooh, wouldn't do that if I were you. Nys isn't totally cool with you, and she just yelled at Harley for something."

"Yeah." Leo sits the dinosaur on the porch and collapses into it. "So uh."

"Yeah _uh_ is right," Jake smirks. "Didn't know you're batting for the other team. You never really liked sports."

"You're funny." Leo folds his arms and tries to keep his limbs to himself. He wouldn't mind running out into the rain. "A joke on wheels."

Jake rolls his eyes. "Were you ever gonna say something? About liking dudes? About having a boyfriend who's my age?"

"He's not my-" Leo stops because Apollo totally _is_. Or at least he thinks he is. Leo's never really had a boyfriend before.

"Is he your sugar daddy?"

"Shut up." Leo scratches his head. "Don't be a dick about it."

Jake sniffs and shrugs. "I'm just wondering how to approach you about it. I _am_ your big brother, you know, and you can still tell me stuff."

Leo looks up at Jake. "Can we not have the man-to-man? Last time we had this, you tried to give me the talk."

"That was fun." Jake laughs and then frowns. "Wait, are you having sex with this guy? Because you're still underage-"

"God no." Leo chokes. Leo loves sex and porn, but having sex with Apollo? Leo pretty much thinks that losing his virginity to a guy, if he even wants to do it, would be super big in his life. He can't do that to Apollo because Leo might be thinking about-

"Um, good. Didn't want to kick some guy's ass." Jake nods, getting red. "Does this mean I have to give you the talk again? But like with more bananas-"

Leo kicks Jake's right wheel lightly. He stands up and wipes his hands on his thighs. "I think I'd rather go inside and deal with Nyssa."

"Uh, I think the, uh, basics are the same, y'know?" Jake's staring at his hands creating loops and fingers going into said loops. "Just the whole, you know, um-"

Leo interrupts him with a hug. His injured arm digs in between them. "Shut up. Just shut up real quick."

Jake pats his back. "Is this why you've been a dick to everyone? Because you've been into it with this guy?"

"No. Apollo's good to me." Leo pulls away. "I've been, uh, busy. With the whole college thing."

"Ah, _college_." Jake mimes shooting himself. "Gonna miss your punk ass eating all the food."

"Still got some time left to eat your Lucky Charms." Leo rolls his eyes.

"You are the worst brother ever." Jake groans. "But you know who would miss you even more?"

Leo looks inside the house. He can hear music playing from inside and the sizzle of something being placed on the stove.

"Go talk to her." Jake pushes Leo toward the door. "And don't be a dick!"

Leo stumbles into the kitchen a few minutes later. He drops the sunflowers on the counter and waits for Nyssa to say something.

She's bustling around making dinner. It smells like spices and garlic. When Nyssa slides vegetables into a pot, she sighs and stares at Leo.

"You put flowers in a vase." Nyssa brushes past him and grabs the flora to properly put them together. The radio is playing a Daddy Yankee song.

"Is that it?" Leo sits on the counter. "Is that all you want to say to me?"

Nyssa regards him coldly, giving him a blank look. "What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know?" Leo admits. "Just yell at me or something! Scold me!"

"Why should I?" Nyssa turns her back to turn on the sink. "You're almost an adult, you don't need me anymore."

"But I do!" Leo leans back and ends up smacking his head on the cupboard. "Ow! See?"

Nyssa snorts and rubs her face. "Leo..."

He rubs his head. "I've been kind of weird lately, but I feel really good right now. Kind of just want to ride this high while it lasts, but I don't want you to hate me."

"I don't hate you, Leo." Nyssa reaches into the freezer for an ice pack. It's old and faded, shaped like Spider-man's head and was bought at some dollar store nearby. She presses the pack into Leo's good hand. "Just disappointed."

"Yeah, I get it! I'm a giant disappointment to everyone." It's not only Leo's head that hurts now. He feels some of his good mood slipping. "I swear, I'm sorry for yelling at you and everything."

Nyssa bites her lip. "I know. I don't like yelling at you either, you know."

"But you're so good at it," Leo mumbles.

"I will break your other arm." Nyssa deadpans. She swipes her hands on her thighs and folds her arms. "You know I'm not good with words."

"Yeah me too! It's like everything I say comes out real stupid." Leo nods.

"Not everything you say." Nyssa leans against the counter next to Leo. "You're really smart, Leo. I'm a bit jealous."

"But you're so cool yourself." Leo pokes Nyssa. "You're Nyssa! My big sister!"

"Mhm."

The speaker on the radio is talking about a new story now. Something about a celebrity doing something bad again. There's another radio host who laughs. It sounds fake. The people in the car commercial that cuts in afterward sound happier.

"I went to the cemetery by myself, by the way," Nyssa says.

Leo turns the best he can. "You did? How was it?"

Nyssa sits her chin in her hand. "Nothing special. I left flowers on my mom's grave. And yours, cause I figured you would've liked it, even after we were yelling at each other."

"Thanks." Leo drops his hands into his lap. He turns the ice pack over and over in his hands. "Sorry, I should've went with you. But I don't even think my mom would've wanted me there anyway."

Nyssa stands straight. "Why do you say that?"

Leo's hands fall limp and he looks up. "I've done some _really_ questionable things lately. Kind of don't think she'll approve of my, er, choices."

"Is this about the gay thing?" Nyssa pats his knee reassuringly. "Cause I think she'll-"

"No," Leo falters. "Maybe. I don't know. I feel kind of bad, anyway. Haven't even thought about Mom in a while. She might be dead, but she's kind of the only parent I have."

Nyssa frowns. "What?"

"I mean," Leo folds his feet up. "Dad isn't actually a dad. It's just been you and Jake raising me and Harles."

"Leo." Nyssa steps away. "What are you talking about?"

"Dad." Leo frowns now. "Are you not living in the same world as I am? I don't even think he cares about us."

Nyssa runs a hand through her hair. "He loves you, Leo. He loves you the _most_ out of all of us."

"I don't- I-" Leo's hand clenches the ice pack, trying his best to avoid it from bursting. "I'd hardly call it love."

"He's just," Nyssa struggles to find the right word. " _Difficult_. He really loves you, I swear. Just give him a chance."

Leo twitches.

"Okay," Nyssa shifts, now standing in front of Leo and holding his knees. "Honestly, I think Dad's only really loved three people."

Leo's face screws up. "There's four of us-"

"Aphrodite, your mom, and you." Nyssa's words strike Leo like he's been stabbed, except the knife is made of ice and it's barely grazing his heart. A few more inches and the blade would've killed, but now it is only so close and so numbingly cold that he can only imagine and want that knife to bury itself in his heart instead.

"Dad used to be pretty active, but I don't think you remember it, even though you should," Nyssa recalls, albeit a little bitterly. "Then your mom died and he disappeared."

"I don't believe you." Leo's body shakes.

Nyssa tugs at her earlobe, twisting it to the point where it glows red. "It's the truth. You can ask Jake, he would know better than me. There was something about the way he acted with your mom. They were in love-"

"If they were in love, then why did he go to someone else?" Leo pleads because he _really_ doesn't want this to all be true. He desperately _needs_ it not to be. "Harley is literally _proof_. He was born barely 9 months after she died."

"Because he _loved_ her." Nyssa turns back to the food she was cooking. He had nearly forgotten about that. "If you loved someone you couldn't have anymore, you would do your best to avoid thinking of them, right?"

"I don't know," Leo flinches. "He- he shouldn't have left us. He wasn't- He didn't even-"

"Leo," Nyssa puts her spoon down. "It's best if you don't think too much about it. Me and Jake have lived out our entire lives trying to avoid it-"

"He can't even _look_ at me." Leo's hands are trembling, shaking to the point of a blur. He stares down at his lap. "Dad's doesn't even look at me. He's _never_ looked at me in the eye."

"I think," Nyssa speaks as slowly and carefully as she can, "it's because you look so much like your mother. Splitting image, really. I don't think he wants any reminders of her."

 _That's it._ Leo thinks. _I'm the reason. I'm the reason why my dad doesn't talk to me. Because I'm me._

He tosses his head back and starts crying like a baby.

No.

He's crying like he's eight again. His mother's in the ground, there's his two older siblings huddled together to the side, and Leo's dad is nowhere to be seen. He was so alone that day, so cold and terrified.

And where was his dad? Nowhere in sight. Because he couldn't bear to look at him. To look at his own son and see the person he loved.

Leaving Leo lost and isolated.

Leaving a child without out a mother and father within the same day.

* * *

Leo doesn't go to school on Friday.

He doesn't really feel up to it. He tells Nyssa that it's Senior Skip Day, even though they're both aware that it isn't.

Leo spends most of his day sleeping, actually. He doesn't really feel anything, but tired and at the same time, restless. He's not sad or anything. But he's not happy.

Leo supposes he's supposed to feel sad. With everything that's been going on in his life, lately, he's supposed to feel _something_. He does feel the itch that he can't reach in his cast.

Leo picks up the phone because he's alone in his room and there's nothing else to do. It's really late- the buzzing excitement of prom flows through his veins calmly, leaving Leo more restless than usual.

"Hey," Jason starts off.

"Hey." Why did he pick up?

Jason lets a solid minute of silence pass. Leo's so unnerved that he's ready to move his finger to click the END button-

"God, Leo, are you okay? You're not showing up to school and I'm really worried about you."

Leo turns in his bed. "Uh huh."

"Wait- no lemme start over. Hold on." Jason hangs up, leaving Leo to stare at his phone screen.

Jason calls again, and Leo lets it sit to the very last ring before picking up.

"Hi," Jason says this time.

"Hey."

"Do you want to come over?"

"... Not really."

Jason scoffs. "You like coming to my house."

"Jason," Leo mumbles. "I really don't-"

"But I want to talk to you." Jason sounds nearly excited, as the words rush through the phone. "Come on, I want to talk to you."

"...Jason-"

"What? I can't hear you!" Jason almost yells. "I can't hear you if you're gonna say no-"

"Jason-"

"-can't... hear..."

"Jason-"

"-You're breaking up on me, Leo."

"JASON!" Leo whisper-yells because the walls are still as thin as ever (despite the fact that he's also home alone) and even though he's being sucked into this very familiar feeling that he has when talking with Jason on nonsense phone calls- though this time it feels a little bit poisoned and rotten like an old apple core- Leo is still aware of the fact that this is the first time he's talked to Jason since the beach. "If I go, will you let me sleep?"

"Sure. Even though it's barely 4 'o clock." Jason must be proud of himself, even if Leo now feels sicker than ever. "Come whenever, okay?"

"Whatever you say, Jason." Leo doesn't make a move to get up. "See you."

"Bye."

Leo hangs up first because he doesn't want to start another ridiculous thing with Jason.

That's all they were at this point anyway. Ridiculous.

* * *

Jason Grace has always been rich, and that is something that hasn't changed in the past week.

For some reason, Leo is actually surprised to find that everything about Jason's life is relatively the same as it's always been. He expected a burned down structure and angry tagging along the gates with FAGGOT written everywhere. He expected a sniper to shoot him down from the rooftops.

Instead, Leo got a giant ass gate opening, and Jason's giddy voice from the intercom telling him to come in. He might've preferred the sniper.

"Hey." Jason looks out of place in the grandness of his house, with his blue hoodie and Flintstones boxers. Hey might be the only way Jason knows how to greet Leo right now- which is... something considering there used to be a time where they would be so close that they would just start talking without much of a greeting.

"Hey," Leo says- and it's definitely awkward. Jason doesn't seem to mind, and gestures for Leo to take off his shoes.

"I got Lupa to make her famous iced tea. I know how you love it." Jason brings Leo to the kitchen. Lupa is, or at least was, Jason's old nanny. The old bat is terrifying but Jason seems to have some bit of love for her. Though Jason's reassured him many times, Leo's sure the old woman hates him, especially after the last time he's been to Jason's house.

Which was when nearly 3 years ago. It's a general rule that Jason doesn't like showing off his richness which means avoiding coming over to his house too often. Leo is still a bit suspicious of being invited to Mount Olympus itself.

"This is really good," Jason continues talking. He twirls the black straw around in his cup. "Still tastes amazing."

"Yeah." Leo sips quietly. "Gotta get her to give me the recipe."

"Right..." Jason's mouth twitches. His lip scar moves side to side. "Let's go up to Thalia's room, I guess."

Leo is pulled through the halls and down an all too familiar pathway. Thalia's room is code for Jason Grace. It's the only place he has to himself because it's the only place where his father would never go. Leo's only been to the room a few times, and each time had either him or Jason bawling their eyes out to each other.

However, Leo also sees this as a neutral zone. It's personal but not as personal as Jason's own room. And while it takes an extreme amount of trust to be taken to Thalia's room, Leo supposes the scales have shifted a little. Jason's room seems closed off to Leo for now and he doesn't know when he'll get the privilege to enter it again.

...Or he can be overthinking it all. Fuckingstupidbrain.

Thalia's room used to be scary to Leo at some point. It would be used so sporadically, that the dust would settle and when the door would slam open, it would be sent flying around like a tornado. Thalia had decorated her room with blackout curtains, not allowing any light to come in, except for small holes that would hit her punk band posters with odd lighting.

Her bedsheets have a spiderweb design and her pillows are a deep purple. The blue lava lamp sitting on her desk is on, meaning that Jason's been in here recently.

"Alright." Jason sits on the bed and pats the spot next to him. "Let's talk."

Leo keeps his space and sits at Thalia's desk instead.

"So, uh," Jason starts after some silence. He should've known better if he had expected Leo to talk first. "You're gay, right?"

"I-"

"Which is fine!" Jason cuts him off. "It's good that you know who you are, Leo. I don't have a problem with gay people, you just took me by surprise last week. But seriously, I'm happy for you."

Leo slumps over in his chair. He feels hot, with a slow trail of lava sliding around in his veins. "Are-"

"And while it's kind of weird you liked me, I think that means we have something really special." Jason carries on. "To be honest, I thought you were mad at me this entire year because I started dating Piper. Turns out you were mad at Piper instead."

"I wasn't-"

"But I think it's okay. Gay is okay, right?" Jason nods to himself. He's scratching his arm. "I'm actually happy that you ended up liking me instead of some other guy, who could have reacted more violently. I wouldn't want to beat some guy up or anything-"

"Are you done?" Leo snaps. "You asked me to come over so we can talk, except you're doing all the talking. Jason, seriously. Shut up."

Jason flushes and falls back into the bed. Leo sighs, and sits next to him. "Dude."

"You always know what to say," Jason mumbles. "Stop being correct."

Leo gives out a mirthless laugh. "I'm never right. Just let us talk okay? Man-to-man, heart-to-heart, or whatever."

"Mano-a-mano." Jason stares up at the ceiling.

Leo shoves his shoulder. He's still annoyed for some reason. Very annoyed. "That doesn't mean what you think it means."

"Oh," Jason sits up and looks at Leo's arm. "How's your arm?"

"You're joking right?" Leo's eyes narrow. "You broke my heart and you're asking about my arm?"

"Just want to know if you're okay-"

"God, Jason, you do know it's because you ran away that I ran and slipped?" Leo's fist clenches. "You fucking outed me to the entire school!"

"It was an accident-"

"Stop it! Stop doing that!" Leo jumps up. "You're so fucking perfect, why can't you make a mistake once? I want to punch you so much right now."

"Leo..."

"I know you're my best friend! Why would you hurt me on purpose? But like- I can't fucking sit here like you didn't hurt me." Leo grips his hair with his one hand. "I'm so done with all of this!"

"Okay." Jason pushes himself back on the bed. He's wary of Leo and that only pisses him off even more. Why is Jason afraid of him? FuckingJasonWhy.

Leo punches Jason. In the stomach, with his hand trembling afterward and there's a hitch in Jason's breath. Leo hit him with his broken hand by reflex, making burning hot pain shoot up his arm.

"Leo," Jason gasps.

"See? Why can't you just hit me back? Why can't you be like every other boy and fight me! Why are you so- agh!" Leo screams. He collapses back on the bed, chest heaving. Jason rubs his stomach and falls back with a wheeze.

After some time, Leo speaks.

"It's... itchy. My arm I mean.

"Oh. Right."

"Yeah."

Jason blows out a lot of air and rubs his palms into his eyes. He looks tired, with deep shadows under his eyes extending to the point where even Nico Di Angelo would be impressed. "Is it okay to ask you questions, or are you going to punch me again? You're strong for a guy with a messed up elbow."

Guilt flushes over Leo like a flood. He feels bad for hitting Jason, but Leo was honest. Everything he said, he truly did feel. Perhaps he owes Jason a bit more honesty. "Why not?"

Jason's hesitant, despite suggesting the fact that he had questions. "When'd you find out? Seriously. That you liked guys. Or liked me, whichever came first."

Leo frowns. He doesn't want to scare Jason away, especially after his big blow up, but he doesn't want to lie. "I don't know. A few years ago, I guess."

"Huh." Jason finds the information interesting even though it isn't. "How'd you know?"

"How'd you know you liked Piper?"

"Fair point," Jason flops back down on the bed. "But isn't it like- isn't it different? Are you sure you just don't really like me as a friend?"

Leo folds his legs up and hugs his knees close. "Are you sure you don't just like Piper as a friend?"

Jason blushes. "Okay."

"This is stupid. Didn't we say that we don't want to share feelings?" Leo whines. "I'd rather not tell you my entire life story."

"You kind of kissed me, I think you owe me." Jason points out.

Leo grunts. "Should've been a fucking lawyer with the way you hold the evidence against me."

"Ha! There goes the Leo I know." Jason has this smug and lazy grin on his face that Leo wants to kiss and punch. If he's done the first, does that mean it's okay for him to do the latter?

"Hey, pay attention to me." Jason shifts closer. "Do you still like girls, or is that off the table?"

Leo thinks about boobs. He thinks about soft skin and painted nails and skirts and kissable lips and eyelashes. Granted, anyone can have those things, and Leo doubts he would care. He then thinks about short nails and rough hands and collarbones and biceps and Adam's apples. Both views are appealing.

Connor has soft skin but so does Piper. Calypso's hands are rough. Annabeth's collarbones are gorgeous. Nico paints his nails (black as hell, as he claims) almost as much as Drew. Rachel's fingernails are just as short as Leo's and she can lift as much as he can. Travis' eyelashes can touch the sky. Apollo is beautiful no matter how Leo can look at him.

"Leo?"

"Yeah, no, I do," Leo admits. "I think I like both. Or all? I don't even know anymore."

Jason senses Leo's internal confusion and pats his back. "It's fine. You don't have to know everything about yourself now. You'll figure it out soon."

"Yeah." Leo leans back into the bed. His hand accidentally hits Jason's, who doesn't move it at all. Their fingers intertwine like fragile threads along life's infinity scarf. Leo feels almost nothing about it, and that in itself is terrifying.

It's silent for some time. Leo's not sure how much time has swept past before Jason's voice drifts back to him. "Hey, do you think... that maybe if you confessed earlier..."

Leo turns his head to look at Jason. "Jason..."

"Y'know when you first kissed me, I wanted to beat the shit out of you. I was really angry, but I don't know why anymore." Jason gives out a light chuckle. "I don't know what would've happened if you kissed me earlier. Years ago or something, or even a few minutes before. It's just weird to think about."

"Yeah. I think I know what you mean." Leo doesn't understand at all.

"Good." Jason turns his head. He's smiling at Leo, and he squeezes his hand. "At least we're cool now, right?"

"I guess." They're kind of not.

"Good," Jason repeats. "Good."

(Leo still thinks Jason's ridiculous, but he figures that Jason's always ridiculous and that's the way Leo likes him.)


	26. n

**a/n: genuinely forgets to post a chapter for a fic that's already been finished lol. the next chapter is the last one, sorry for making you all wait for this.**

* * *

 **n**

Leo almost forgets about prom until there's a knock on his bedroom door and Drew and Rachel come bustling in looking like the belles of the ball.

"Why aren't you dressed?" Drew's pulling him out of bed. Rachel carefully steps around Leo's clutter to peer into his closet. "Get up, Valdez."

"Ugh," Leo mumbles, rubbing his eyes. Perhaps he should stop sleeping in his boxers because no one in his life knocks. He sits up and yanks his arm away from Drew. "How'd you get into my room?"

"Harley." Drew scowls. "Go brush your teeth, your breath smells."

"Yes, ma'am." Leo trots to the bathroom. He can hear Drew and Rachel whispering and running around in his room.

" _Whare you doin'_?" Leo peeks his head out. Toothpaste dribbles from his mouth and he catches it with his other hand. Oh wow, this might be the first time Rachel's been in his room actually. She keeps messing with the LEGO models on his desk, being particularly interested in the rather tall Empire State Building that had been covered with a pair of dirty jeans.

Rachel's wearing a lady tux. Her bowtie is the same green as Drew's dress, which is a short thing with lots of tulle and sparkles. Leo assumes it's not easy finding a pretty green dress.

"Ew! Go wash your face or something. And hurry _up!_ " Drew waves him away from her seat on his bed. She's been watching Rachel straighten out the tuxedo that Leo had thrown in his closet.

" _Ew! Go wash yer fave or somefine. Am hurry upf_!" Leo spits out the toothpaste. He spends five minutes staring at his acne, wondering if there's anything too horrifyingly white on his face. Pimples are a risky business.

When he gets back, Drew is fussing over Rachel's hair. Her hair…

"Did you get a haircut?" Leo tilts his head. He slides on his white shirt, buttoning it up slowly.

Rachel's hair used to be a mass that reached her back, but now it's gone into an ear length curly mess. A _bob_? Who the hell knows the name of hairstyles?

"Nah," Rachel says, even though it's obvious that she cut her hair. "I think you're going crazy."

Drew rolls her eyes and claps her hands. "Chop chop, Valdez! We haven't got all day!"

"I still don't understand why you're in my room." Leo fumbles with his tie.

"Well, I don't understand why you think suspenders are cute." Drew snaps one, hitting Leo's chest. He rubs the sore part with a roll of his eyes.

"He looks fine." Rachel slides her arm over Drew's shoulders. "Could do something about his hair."

"It's too late to cut it." Drew sighs. She adjusts Leo's bow tie so it properly sits in the center. "Not bad, Leo."

" _'_ _Not bad, Leo'_ ," Leo rolls his eyes again. "The highest of compliments coming from you."

Drew folds her arms. "Where's your date? Is he not picking you up?"

"Nah, we were going to meet at the thing." Leo kicks some of his clothes to the side. "Almost forgot though."

Wait, did she just say he? How did she know?

" _Unbelievable._ " Drew throws her hands in the air. She has a pretty white corsage on her wrist. "You were going to leave Travis at the dance by himself."

"Wait, I'm _not_ -"

"Come on, we're burning daylight," Rachel tugs on Drew's arm. "Let's go."

"But I'm not-"

Drew pushes him out the room.

Nyssa needs to take pictures, despite the fact that neither Rachel nor Drew are Leo's date.

"It's for the memories!" Nyssa yells at him, pulling at his clothes this way and that. "Come on, Leo."

That tone is not something to mess with, so Leo stands still.

"He's not even wearing shoes." Jake pauses the TV. Harley sits up and starts cackling. "Ah, prom, huh? I remember when-"

"You look stupid!" Harley points at Leo, who squints at him and mimes a noogie. That quiets Harley down to a soft whine and as he complains to Jake. Their older brother doesn't say anything, just looking fondly towards the drama Nyssa was creating.

Rachel's on her phone and chewing gum by the time Leo comes back down with shoes on. With her leaning on the banister, Leo can sort of see the conversation she's having with someone, in addition to some odd reflection of Rachel's face. She's so pretty.

Nyssa is relentless with the camera clicking, to the point where Leo's positive that there's not enough storage and she's clicking the button solely to mess with him. Then she grabs Drew and Rachel's phones to snap a few more pics. She also makes a grab for Leo's ugly phone, but he holds her at bay.

"I'll just take a selfie or something."

"You don't even have a front-facing camera," Drew says with unveiled disgust. Leo still tries, squeezing in his entire family, and holding his phone like an idiot.

The picture isn't bad- Harley's left arm is cut out, and Rachel isn't looking at the camera because she's laughing. Drew's big head cuts off part of Nyssa's chin, and Leo looks a bit cross-eyed. Jake looks pretty good actually.

He kisses Nyssa goodnight and makes a promise to be home by 12 or 1 at the latest. Leo doubts he's going to want to stay that long anyway.

* * *

Rachel is the one who drives, despite it being Drew's car. Well, not really Drew's car, but it's her mom's.

"So you drove to Rachel's house, and then _all the way_ back here to pick me up?" Leo leans forward in his seat. "And you say you're _not_ in love with me?

Drew turns her head. "Shut up and put on your seatbelt, before we get into an accident and you hit the windshield."

That effectively shuts Leo up and makes him put on a seatbelt. Drew tuts at him, and goes back to her phone.

"My driving's not that bad," Rachel says. She slows to a stop at the traffic light. "Ugh, I'm so hungry. What're you in the mood for?"

"Not that hungry," Drew doesn't look up.

"McDonald's." Leo stares out the window at the fluorescent golden M across the street.

" _Ew_ ," Drew groans when Rachel flicks on her turn light. "Do they have salads?"

"Who the heck gets a salad at McDonald's?" Leo is only now realizing he has the entire back seat to himself and is stretching his limbs everywhere. "Just get chicken nuggets."

"Gross." Drew turns to Rachel. "See if they have a salad or something healthy." Rachel gives her a look that Leo can't quite comprehend, and it causes Drew to tug at her own hair. " _Please?_ "

Rachel knows Leo's order, after a year of ordering (has it really been so long?) and hesitantly orders a cheeseburger instead of a salad per Drew's request. The betrayed look the girl has is akin to the murder of puppies but Rachel doesn't seem to care.

"Uh, can you get Sprite?" Leo cuts in like it's not awkward for him to exist in the car of two girls who seem to have something personal going on.

"Yeah, sure, whatever." Rachel taps the wheel, finishing the order. She groans and hits her head on the wheel. "Should've gotten a milkshake."

"Shit, you're right," Leo agrees with pity.

Drew rolls her eyes and flicks lint off her car seat.

"This is disgusting." Drew mumbles into her cheeseburger. "It actually tastes processed."

"The fries are good," Leo leans forward to offer a bright red container. "I think they were just made cause they're super hot."

"Oh snap, gimme some." Rachel awkwardly twists her arm to reach, eyes glancing cautiously at the road. "Nice."

"Y'know, for something so processed, you're still eating the cheeseburger," Leo smirks when he notices Drew sipping on her drink (water, of course) with the burger in her hand. Her phone balances on her thigh, alit with an Instagram feed (Rachel's- Leo recognizes the curly red hair and the artwork).

Drew swallows. "It's not _that_ bad."

"Yeah, but you made it seem like it was trash-"

"Leave me alone you piece of-"

Rachel turns on the music louder to drown out their bickering.

* * *

The entrance is a giant archway littered with stars. Silver and black tinsel are woven through the wooden arch, and to its side is the table checking off names for those who paid.

"Hi Lacy!" Drew's voice is high pitched and sickly sweet. She bends down to kiss the cheeks of one of the girls sitting at the table. "You're on the committee?"

"Yep!" Lacy's head bobs up and down. She smiles brightly, all big teeth and pink braces. Her blond ponytail jumps at the movement. "I hope my prom is as pretty as this."

"It _is_ beautiful." Drew peeks through the arch. "Even for a high school gym." She digs through her bag and waves her student ID. "Need this?"

"Right!" Lacy begins scanning her clipboard. She checks something with a red pen and looks up to Rachel with a gasp. "And you must be Rachel! So glad to meet you."

"Uh, thanks?" Rachel offers her a hesitant smile. "Didn't think I was famous."

"Of course!" Lacy babbles. Her hand flips over to cover her mouth from Drew's view as she leans in. "Drew talks about you _all_ the time. It's like totally crazy! She's so in lo-"

"Lacy, you need to sign Leo in, hon." Drew taps her nails on the table. "Don't want to miss our prom by standing here."

"Right, right, of course!" Lacy's head nods so fast that it's a blonde blur. She beams at Leo and checks his ID. "Don't forget to vote for prom king and queen!" She throws two big thumbs up. "I've got my fingers crossed for you, Drew!"

"Thanks, doll, you're the best." Drew blows a little kiss and pulls the other two into the gym.

"Who was that?" Leo blinks at the encounter.

"Better question, how much coffee did she have, and where can I get it?" Rachel snorts. She smirks and bumps her hip to Drew's. "You talk about me a lot, huh?"

"Don't think highly of yourself." Drew's cheeks are visibly pink even in the dark lighting. "Lacy just happens to ask a lot of questions. It's annoying, actually."

"Yikes. Kinda rude to say that about your adoring fan." Leo says.

Drew sighs and steers them away from the door, pushing them further into a mass of teenage bodies. "She's a good person though. I boss her around a lot, but she's loyal. Hopefully, next year she'll make those bitches I call friends better people."

"How sweet," Rachel rolls her eyes. "No way- look at Lou Ellen!" Rachel drags Drew through the crowd with intertwined fingers, leaving Leo by himself surrounded by hanging stars.

The decorations are neat, Leo takes a step back to admire them. The DJ's station has a giant and beautifully painted yellow full moon, as pounding pop (or rather trap music, because that's what's popular now) beats through the speakers into a mob of jumping teens. Right. No one knows how to dance.

Glitter lightly coats the room, as glow in the dark stars shine from the walls, and the occasional flash from a photographer blinds those nearby. Paper mache planets and star cutouts hang from the ceiling, while a giant cardboard sun sits on the makeshift stage. There's a giant spaceship booth with people asking for prom votes, while the refreshments table is tucked away under a glossy shooting star.

There's a lot of people, Leo's slowly starting to realize. He then thinks the space prom idea is stupid, because the whole room is sucking the breath out of his lungs.

Okay, maybe it's not that stupid. It's perfect, because Leo is very alone and can't breathe or hear or really feel.

Props to the prom committee then.

* * *

While Leo's biting into a cupcake with an aluminum wrapper, he spots Connor Stoll in a light gray tux with a blue tie leaning on one of the tables pushed towards the walls of the gym.

"Hey," Leo has to yell, "how'd you get in here? Aren't you a sophomore?"

"Yeah," Connor fiddles with the black and silver table topper. "Just told them I was Travis and they let me in. He's looking for you, by the way."

"Right," Leo moves out of the way as people push by. He falls back against the wall. "So you're just standing here then?"

"Pretty much?" Connor shrugs. "How'd you know it was me anyway? Most people assumed I was Travis."

"You guys look different." Leo eyes the crowd. He thinks he saw the kaleidoscope colors of Piper's eyes from across the room but he's not too sure because of the distance and lighting. "You both look stupid, but one of you looks more stupid."

"Heh!" Connor nods at someone who waves at him. He looks tired, with hair all messed up and shadows under his eyes. One of his buttons were put into the wrong hole at the bottom of his shirt. "Sounds like something my brother would say!"

" _Travis?_ "

"No! My other brother, Luke!" Connor moves closer, so Leo can hear. "He works at 7-Eleven like a loser."

"I think I know who you're talking about." Leo nods. "Yeah- I think he bought me a pack of cigarettes once. He seems cool."

Connor laughs. "He's a dick. My family is literally just a bunch of losers. It's fine though, I think Trav' is gonna break the cycle next year. Otherwise? _Shit!_ "

Leo frowns. Something about the way Connor speaks is weird. Has he always been this weird? Not that Connor's weird or anything, but it's just… off-putting. Sad, really.

"Ugh, it's going to suck when he goes to college!" Connor groans, head tossed back. He pats Leo's arm. "Ugh, it's going to suck when _you_ go to college! Don't forget us small folk back home."

Leo fist bumps him. "I'll try not to."

"Heh, yeah." Connor stuffs his hands in his pockets. Leo hears the very soft jingle of car keys underneath the heavy music. "I'm going to get something to drink, want anything?"

"Sure." Leo steps away from the wall and back towards the table a few feet away. "I'll just be over here."

Leo scans the room. Drew is hovering by the doorway leading to the hallway with bathrooms. She's listening to some pretty girl with brunette curls who is going on and on about something. Rachel is somewhere on the outskirts of the gym, laughing with people who Leo recognizes from the Gardening Club.

Clovis leans on another table, listening to his friends. Leo hadn't known Clovis was so popular- he's a bit entranced with the way a bunch of dudes (Lacrosse Boys, Leo's mind supplies) shove each other and hype each other up around Clovis.

Hell, even Annabeth is here. She dances with Percy, arms around his neck, all smiles and starry eyes. They're wrapped in their own little world, not seeming to mind the fact that they're slow dancing to a poorly remixed version of Bodak Yellow. It's sweet, if not _really_ strange.

"Leonidas, am I right?" Leo turns his head to a very fine woman coming his way. A long purple dress with lovely curves and a neckline that does not seem to adhere to dress codes is making its way to a suddenly more alert Leo, who has no clue who the lady adorning such a thing is.

"It's Leo. And you are…"

"Reyna." Reyna has a very nice deep red lipstick on. _Very_ nice. "We've met before, actually."

Leo snaps his fingers, memories slipping together at the words. "Yeah, yeah, Reyna! Where's grumpy ass Draco?"

"Octavian is in the bathroom, actually." Reyna smiles. Her face doesn't look like it's very accustomed to smiling, but it looks good doing it. "I actually came here because of Jason. He and uh, his date were looking for you."

"Jason and Piper looking for me? I'm honored to have the royal couple request for their jester." It was supposed to be a joke, but it didn't feel very funny leaving his lips.

Regardless, Reyna laughs- a tingling sound humming pleasantly in Leo's ears. "They are indeed the royal couple. I hadn't realized how close they were, even with all of Jason's messages until I saw them in person."

"Yep. They're perfect for each other." Leo rolls his eyes. He makes eye contact with Connor heading back to the table. "No offense, but why are you here? Isn't your prom next week?"

Reyna looks away. "It's silly."

"Who cares? Tell me."

"Ah," Reyna cracks her knuckles. "Just a little promise me and Jason had during freshman year. We both expected to go to prom together, but when he realized he was transferring we promised to go to each others' proms no matter what happened after he left. I had expected it to end up… differently. But this is fine too."

"Ha," Leo thanks Connor for the drink. Connor stands awkwardly but doesn't intrude on the conversation, finding company in his phone. "You totally got sucker punched into liking Jason. Heh- not even SPQR elite is immune to him."

Reyna laughs. Laughs really long and really hard. "I don't like Jason. Not anymore at least. It took some time but I got over him." Her hopeful eyes fall towards the middle of the gym. Towards Percy and Annabeth, who were both embarrassingly jerking their limbs in strange movements that could _not_ be called dancing. Whether she's looking at Percy or Annabeth, Leo has no clue.

"But yes," Reyna lets out another fleeting chuckle. "Not even SPQR elite is immune to Jason Grace. Who is looking for you, by the way."

"Yeah-" Leo chokes and spits out his drink. It tastes like Kool-Aid without the sugar but substituted with the sweetness of old gym socks. "Oh gross, don't drink this stuff, I think it might be bad for you. And the environment, actually."

Reyna giggles again and pats the table. "I see Octavian- I still don't understand why he even volunteered to join me when he hates people. But friends try to be there for you, am I right?" Reyna nods at Leo. "It was very nice talking to you Leon- Leo. I hope to see you again, in the near future."

"Pleasure was all mine," Leo says because he has no idea what to say to a girl like that.

Connor gags and slams his cup on the table. "That was disgusting. Why didn't you warn me?"

" _Dude!_ "

* * *

Leo finds Jason and Piper on the roof. They're sitting on the floor, drinking the piss-juice served downstairs and eating cookies.

"Your Puerto Rican ex is back there." Leo thumbs towards the door, as he tugs on his tie. His shirt's fallen out of his pants and the wind messes with his hair. He feels warm and surprisingly comfortable in his tuxedo jacket. "She's crazy hot, man."

"Hey, Leo." Jason mumbles. Piper grins at him.

"You look good, Beauty Queen." She does. She's wearing the same blue dress that she had tried on a few weeks ago. The blue one that matched her and Jason's eyes. It's off the shoulders look and thigh length cut opened the world to see more of Piper's flawless skin. Piper's legs are crossed as they stick out in front of her. Her sparkly shoes have been tossed to the side in a pile.

"Oh _God_ , you haven't called me that in _months_. And not too bad yourself." Piper muses. "Though suspenders? Really? I don't think you know that they're not cute."

"Drew said almost the same thing." Leo sits carefully on the ground. Now that he's closer and he's sitting, Leo can now see that the two were playing cards- Uno actually. "Oh snap, let me play."

Jason collects all the cards to shuffle them again. He's really good at shuffling- Jason's got this kind of technique where he manages to get the deck into one neat pile by the end of his extravagant card moving. Leo's good with his hands, but not even _he_ can shuffle cards without making a mess.

Piper's more of a Connect-4 kind of girl.

"No stacks, or whatever BS rules you guys like to cheat with." Jason flips over the first card. "Order is left of the dealer." Jason Leo Piper. Cool.

"So Leo," Piper finally says after a few boring turns. "How's your prom been so far? Did you see the chocolate fountain?"

"It's been okay." Leo puts down a Reverse card. "And you guys?"

"We got bored and came up here," Jason says. "It's pretty warm right now, and when you sit you can't feel the wind."

"Yeah." Leo's turn gets skipped. "So like, you're just going to stay here all night or…?"

Piper shrugs and picks up a card. "I'll probably come down to see if Drew actually wins prom queen. I think afterward we're going to the arcade-" she looks to Jason for confirmation, who shrugs, "-so if you're up to it, you can tag along."

"I'll think about it."

Jason stretches and shakily stands up. "I'm going to the bathroom. You guys want anything?"

"Unfair!" Leo calls him out. "You just wanted to get out of picking up cards!"

Jason smugly shrugs, and with a kiss to Piper's cheek, he's gone. Piper pulls the cards into a pile and slowly tries to shuffle them.

Leo's watch only says 9:30. Apollo should be coming soon, and Leo would have to tell the check-in table that Apollo's his plus one. Heh. Leo's _actually_ going to prom with Apollo.

"You hate me, don't you?"

Leo frowns, looking at Piper. She's still moving the cards around, but her hands are trembling and her head is down. Her hair conceals any expressions that Leo might've normally caught. "What?"

"You hate me, right? 'Cause of what I did?"

"I'm so confused- what'd you do?"

"I took Jason from you." Piper looks up with watery eyes. "I'm such a shitty friend."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Leo delicately peels the deck of Uno cards from her hand and shifts closer. He isn't sure where this entire outburst is coming from. "You definitely did _not_ take Jason from me."

"I shouldn't have done it. It wasn't right."

"You didn't know, it's okay."

Piper clenches her dress in her hands. "But I _did_ know. I kind of _always_ knew. Like, there was just this _voice_ in my head that kept saying that you and Jason were just so _close_ -"

"We're best friends."

"Yeah, but _we're_ best friends, and I don't think you ever liked me. Not like _that_ , at least."

"Oh."

Piper wipes at her face. "I was _so_ excited because Jason said _'Okay_ ' after I confessed, that I forgot that maybe you liked Jason too. And then at some point, I was just rubbing it in your face, because you get _everything_ and this- Jason was _mine_."

Leo swallows and sits back. He doesn't touch her because something in him might _burn_ her with his suppressed emotions. Everything he feels is dirty and something he shouldn't say out loud.

With as long as Jason's absence is, Leo's starting to suspect that this was planned. Reyna was wrong. Jason wasn't the one who wanted to talk. It was Piper.

"I'm _really_ sorry, Leo." Piper's crying gets louder as she tries to breathe through the mucus trembling down her face. "I _love_ Jason, and I didn't understand you two. I _swear_ \- I didn't want to mess up our friendship. You just- you're just so-"

"-Piper, I-"

"-Fucking _amazing_. I don't get it." Piper drops her head into her hands. "You're so freaking smart, and everyone likes you, and you don't even care about- about _anything_! I was just so happy that Jason was such a win for _me_ , that I didn't think about what it meant to _you_."

Piper's shoulders shake violently and she violently scrubs at her face. Leo has a lot of things running through his mind (mostly confusion and the slight bit of _disgust_ and _betrayal_ ) but he lets her cry. He thinks that maybe she _needs_ this.

When Piper seems to have quieted down, Leo speaks.

"I don't hate you, you know. I _can't_ hate you." He doesn't hate her, no, but he definitely does not feel extremely good about her right now.

"I thought you were going to tell me."

"Tell you what?"

"I would've-" She hiccups. "I would've broke up with Jason. If you had told me you liked him so I could've been sure. If- if that was why this year was so- so-"

"So fucked up?"

"Yeah. I would've done it for you. I _swear_ , Leo, I just-" Piper's knees slid up, and she lays her cheek on her knees. Her makeup is a bit smudged. "I don't know. I really am sorry."

Leo gets to his feet. The wind has died down, so he sits on the edge of the building. Below him are some teenagers joking around cars, pushing and laughing. He longs to just be one of them. Only for a night. So he can feel normal.

"Yeah." Leo says. "I know."

Piper stands too, a shaky and awkward stumble. She sits next to him and folds her arms around herself like she's cold. Maybe she is. He thinks of offering her his jacket but decides against it.

"You're such a good person, Leo."

"I'm not."

"But you _are_. I meant what I said- you're really amazing."

"Stop saying that. I'm really not."

Piper keeps quiet for a moment. "Jason thinks it too. He always talks about you."

Leo bites his lip.

"He said it wasn't my fault." Piper continues. Her fingers softly skirt the stone of the building. "He said it was both of our faults. But not yours. We almost broke up because of you a while back. Some argument over why you weren't talking to us."

"Right." Leo didn't know this, and he almost feels bad.

Almost.

"And it was so _stupid_. You had all these new friends, and it was like you outgrew us. Like, it wasn't us three facing the world anymore, because it was _you_ who had already conquered it."

"That's ridiculous."

"But that's what it _felt_ like." She hesitantly puts her head on his shoulder and relaxes when he doesn't move away. "I broke your heart and you _thrived_."

"I was definitely not _'thriving'_." Leo wants to laugh, because _Christ_ , if only Piper knew. His phone vibrates, and he looks over his shoulder to the parking lot. He sees the Sunshine Mobile that Apollo drives and sighs. "I guess I should've told you I liked guys too. I just couldn't."

"Yeah," Piper mumbles, "I wasn't entirely sure but yeah, I had strong suspicions. Sometimes you said Jason's name in your sleep."

"Oh... well that's embarrassing."

Piper laughs. "Gosh, Leo, you really are the best."

He doesn't know why she said that. "Okay. Hey, can you lift up your head? I have to get up."

Piper lets him go. As Leo is about to leave, he hears a sharp intake of breath and then a strange laughing noise come out of Piper.

"Oh _God_ ," Piper is borderline hysterical. "I can't believe I ruined our senior year over a guy."

Leo shrugs. "He's one hell of a guy."

"Jason ain't _shit_." Piper rolls her eyes with a grin. "Best friends like you are what really matter."

"Right." Leo tugs at his collar. "I'll see you around, Pipes? Catch a movie or something?" He doesn't know why he offered, because after tonight the only thing he actually wants to do is graduate. It just felt polite. He thinks Piper needed the offer at this point.

It's odd but Piper (and quite possibly Jason) needs him. It's even more bizarre that Leo doesn't quite feel the same way.

"I would like that. I would like that very much." She's all genuine big smiles and the stars in her eyes glow just a bit brighter.

* * *

Leo jumps on Apollo the moment he sees him. His hands hold Apollo's face tightly, and he smashes his face into the other. It's painful and not as romantic as Leo originally had thought, but Apollo smiles against his lips and wraps his arms around Leo's waist.

"You're happy," Apollo says when Leo falls back.

"Not really," Leo admits. "I just really needed to see you right now."

"Well, I'm here." Apollo looks around. "In my old high school's parking lot. _Wow_ , this is weird."

Leo laughs. Simply Apollo's _presence_ was making him feel good. This is great- fantastic even. They start walking towards the school entrance. " _You_ think this is weird? I literally got outed in front of the entire school, and now I'm openly bringing my boyfriend to prom."

"At least he's a cute boyfriend." Apollo winks and then pulls on Leo's arm. "Wait- _outed_? How- who- I swear, I'll hurt _whoever_ did it-"

"I'll tell you about it later." Leo pulls Apollo through the doors. The line isn't too long. "You're not allowed to kill my friends."

"Whatever you say, Leo. Though I can't say that they're your _friends_ ," Apollo grabs Leo's hand and interlaces their fingers with a slight squeeze. His hand is very warm. Despite the confidence Leo had a few moments ago, his heart is now ready to break out of his chest, and his breathing is getting too fast.

 _Jeez_ , he's about to go to prom with his boyfriend. In front of all his classmates. In front of his friends. In front of his teachers.

Apollo squeezes his hand. "I'm so nervous. Haven't been to prom in years. What's everyone going to think of me?"

Leo feels comforted by Apollo's nervous ramblings. Right- this isn't just a Leo thing, this is an Apollo&Leo thing.

"You'll be fine, that was like, uh, three or four years ago," Leo says. "Or you could get arrested because I'm underage."

"I looked it up, actually." Apollo looks down at him. For once, Leo didn't mind his average height. Apollo isn't that much taller than him, though. "Your birthday is in 3 months, right? You're old enough to make your own decisions."

"Besides," Apollo whispers into Leo's ear suddenly. "It's not like we're doing it."

Leo bursts out laughing. "You mean sex?"

"Shh!" Apollo's face is going red. "Don't say that!"

"Why?"

"I don't want to talk about s-e-x with a minor during his own prom! That's when all the teens have s-e-x!" Apollo throws his hands in the air, forgetting that his fingers are still clasping Leo's.

Leo snorts. He's not exactly getting Apollo's point. Everyone talks about sex, and everyone is aware of the whole "going-to-a-hotel-afterwards-and-giving-the-school-year-a-last-bang." Leo's thought about sex with Apollo (in fact, he thought about it when he first saw Apollo in his black tuxedo and yellow tie). He'd probably be gentle, always making sure that Leo's okay and everything is fine. Leo's definitely still not ready to have sex with him though, thoughts aside.

"I know how to spell!" Apollo and Leo both jump at Lacy's voice. She holds a pout, but it falls apart to reveal her bright smile. "You guys are just too cute!"

"Uh, thanks." Leo is acutely aware of the way the girl is staring at his hand in Apollo's. She looks happy, so this sends a flurry of _good_ butterflies into Leo's stomach. He hasn't had good butterflies in a while, so the nervously giddy energy makes him smile back. "Uh, how do I fill out the guest information?"

After Lacy is done with helping Leo out, she slaps a neon orange band on Apollo's wrist.

"For safety," She winks and happily waves them off. "Have fun!"

Apollo tugs at the wristband. "Huh."

They stand at the doorway, peering in.

"What's _'huh'_?"

"It's just- it's funny, right? The wristband?"

"How is that funny?"

"It's like when we met. You were wearing one because you couldn't drink at a mini concert."

"Huh. That is funny."

"Yep…"

"Are we?" Leo looks at him and laughs. "Are we stalling?"

"Yep." Apollo giggles like a kid. "You go in."

"No, you go in."

"No, _you_."

"How about we both go?" Leo grabs his arm. "On the count of three?"

"Why not? One."

"Two."

"Three."

Leo Valdez is officially and now properly out to his peers. And it fucking feels _good_.

* * *

It's totally crazy, but Calypso came to prom. He assumed that something like prom _'wouldn't be her thing_ '. She and Travis enter together, both looking disheveled and wild. If Leo didn't know any better, he would say they were hardcore making out.

But Leo _does_ know better, and the reason why becomes apparent when Travis gets himself punch. Leo excuses himself from his dance partner (Apollo is somehow even worse than Percy and Annabeth, and he's doing the _ugliest_ moonwalk Leo's ever seen) to talk to them.

"Hey, what's up with your hand?" Leo doesn't even hesitate to comment on the bandaged appendage. Travis ignores him, pushing Leo aside to grab a napkin. Rude.

Calypso gives Travis a look and talks for him. "Found him fighting a tree. He nearly broke his hand if I hadn't stopped him."

Leo squints at her face. "Your cheek is swollen." He touches it and Calypso winces.

He realizes what actually happened, and shoves Travis. "Dude, you don't fucking hit women!"

"I didn't hit her!" Travis yells back and pushes Leo, who stumbles and falls on his ass. "Just leave me alone!" He storms off towards the bathroom.

Leo sits, dumbstruck and staring at Calypso. She sighs and helps him up. "Don't mind him."

"What's his deal?" Leo wipes off the dust from his clothes. "He's never like that."

"You're his deal," Calypso says. "Cute suspenders, they're really working for you."

"Thanks, but what do you mean ' _I'm his deal'_?" Leo says, incredulous. "This is the first time I saw him tonight."

"I think you know what I mean." Calypso rubs her cheek. She's wearing makeup- only mascara and thick eyeliner to create a beautiful line that points upward making her eyes look cooler. She must be suffocating in the leather jacket and black dress though. "Let him cool off, and then talk to him."

Leo nods but doesn't heed her advice. He marches to the bathroom. Travis stood at the farthest sink and was breathing hard. His knuckle were white from gripping the ceramic and red from scrapes. He was an animal.

"What's up with you?" Leo folds his arms.

"What's up with _you_?" Travis glares and turns back to the mirror. He's fixing his hair which is streaked with sweat. "You normally keep boyfriends a secret, or do you just kiss men in parking lots?"

Ouch. He must've seen him and Apollo in the parking lot. "Man, can you chill?"

"Can _you_ chill?" Travis whirls around to face Leo. He points an accusatory finger at him, blue eyes looking wild. "I thought we were friends, I thought you would've told us about- _whoever he is!"_

"Us?"

"Me! Us! The gang! _Who cares!"_ Travis yells wildly. "Why didn't you just say you had a boyfriend!"

Leo pushes him back again. Travis slams into the bathroom stall door. It bangs open, Travis nearly falls into the toilet. "Stop yelling! I just _couldn't_ , okay?! I don't tell everyone about my life because shit like this happens! People get angry, and it fucking _sucks_!"

"Well, fucking suck it up buttercup, because the world sucks! Everything sucks and we're supposed to make it _better_."

"Travis, I can't do _that,_ " Leo kicks the stall door. " _Damn it_! I can't do anything right!"

Travis stares at him with wide eyes. Leo can only stare back. The stall door creaks back and forth over the sound of their breathing.

"Sorry," Leo says, finally. "Shouldn't have accused you of attacking Calypso. Or yelled at you either."

"No, I did." Travis lets out a giant breath and sits on one of the bathroom sinks. It groans under his weight. "I was mad and she tried to stop me from breaking my hand, and my elbow hit her face."

Leo winces. "Jeez. Why the hell were you fighting a _tree?"_ Leo thinks he knows the answer. Maybe he's like Piper that way- he already suspects, but just wants to truly hear Travis say it for himself.

Travis looks away. "I'd rather not."

"Come on," Leo teases. "I'll tell everyone you lost a fight with a flower."

Travis looks at him, slight amusement in his eyes and a hint of a smirk. "It wasn't a flower, it was a tree."

"But no one else knows that, right?" Leo raises an eyebrow. "My, oh, my, how the great Travis Stoll was defeated by a _daisy_ \- mmp."

Travis kisses him. Leo doesn't know what do, so he just stands there, until Travis leans back against the mirror.

" _God,_ " Travis sighs, licking his lips. "I've wanted to do that ever since I met you."

Leo opens his mouth to say something, but he can't find the right words, so he closes it.

"I didn't think it would hurt," Travis says. He looks at Leo and touches his own chest. "Physically, I mean. Seeing you kiss him actually broke my heart. I thought I was going to die."

Leo knows the feeling. He says this, in the form of: "I know."

"And I got really angry. I was so _mad_ that some other guy got to you and I was just your friend with some dumb crush." Travis stares at his hand. "And all I kept thinking was that maybe if I could actually hurt _physically_ , it wouldn't hurt, like, inside here." He taps his chest again.

"I know."

Travis looks tired now. He slides off the sink and aggressively rubs his eyes with his palms. "I'm not going to lie and say I wish you luck, 'cause I honestly hate the guy right now. But I hope you're happy, you know. With him I guess. I don't know what I'm supposed to say."

"You think you'll be okay?" Leo asks.

"I'm not going to be depressed or anything. Connor's depressed, and like, he's all messed up mentally and takes meds and stuff. But this is just, you know, a crush." Travis has a strained smile. "I'll get through it. Pretty soon it'll just be ' _Remember when I liked that kid and he had a boyfriend? Crazy.'_ "

There's certainly a lot to dissect from all that. Leo decides to leave it for another day, however.

"His name's Apollo." Leo elbows Travis. "Just so you have a name to a face you hate."

"I don't _hate_ him. I know I just said I did, but it's like," Travis' hands move around before dropping. "I don't know, man."

"It's cool." Leo knows and understands.

" _Ugh,_ " Travis slaps his head. " _Apollo_. Sounds like a douchebag."

"And Travis doesn't?"

"Hey!" They start heading back to the gym.

Before they enter again, Leo stops Travis. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, fine." Travis gives him a thumbs up. "Why?"

Leo highly doubts Travis is okay, but he doesn't want to intrude too much. He hopes he'll be fine though. Who knows how deep his feelings were? Leo makes a mental note to tell Connor to watch out for him.

"Just checking." Leo pats him on the back. Travis grabs Leo's arm.

"You're not useless, Leo. You know that, right?" Travis looks him in the eye. For once, Leo felt _seen_. Travis understood more than Leo expected. "You said something about not doing things right. But I've seen you do a lot of good this year."

"Thanks." Leo nods, not wanting to talk about it more. "Come on, let me show you the worst pair of dancers ever."

* * *

"EXCUSE ME, YOU HOOLIGANS! SHUT UP OR I'LL MAKE YOU ALL DO LAPS!" Coach Hedge efficiently manages to quiet the entire room of teenagers, without the assistance of his megaphone.

"Who's that?" Apollo whispers to Leo.

"A menace to society," Leo whispers back.

Hedge reaches for his megaphone. "I AM-" Rather than words coming out, glitter and confetti spurts out, spraying the entire first row of people in front of him.

Hedge somehow makes eye contact with Leo through the crowd in a split second and bellows his infamous " _VALDEZ!_ DETENTION!" After years of this, none of the other seniors or juniors are surprised.

Leo is, in fact, actually surprised as he chokes back laughter. "Sorry, Coach, wasn't me! Haven't messed with you in months!"

Hedge swears and mumbles something about FRESHMAN WHO NEED MORE PUSH UPS, before coughing loudly. "Alright, cupcakes, now I'm here to introduce this year's prom king and queen. Will the candidates get up here?"

Leo hears Drew's _move it_ 's from across the room. He can barely see Rachel moving up along with her, as Drew storms upstage. To Hedge's right stood the girls: Drew, a slightly irritated Annabeth, and a meek and sweet looking Juniper.

"She smokes weed, right?" Leo asks Connor, who shrugs and then nods. Calypso says something that Leo can't hear.

On the other side of Hedge were the boys: a nervous Grover, some kid Leo doesn't know, and freaking _Clovis_ , who Leo is starting to realize is a _lot_ more popular and well-liked than Leo originally thought despite being The Kid Who Is Always Asleep.

"Votes are in, yadda yadda yadda. Speech about courage and opportunity. Speech about friends and kindness. Blah blah blah." Hedge waves his hands wildly for two freshmen to bring up crowns, flowers, and sashes. Leo can practically feel Drew salivating.

"Who'd you vote for?" Apollo whispers again.

"I forgot."

"So who should we clap the loudest for?"

"Drew," Leo says. "And Clovis, I guess."

"Without further ado," Hedge carries on, blank with emotion. "Your runner-ups are Drew Tana-"

" _NO!_ " Drew screams. She frantically reaches for Hedge's card. "Read it again!"

He does, and when the cautious freshman tries to give her a tiny tiara, Drew screams again and runs off stage. Leo ignores the hesitant applause when the actual king and queen were called (Annabeth and Grover, neither seeming particularly pleased) and pulls Apollo along with him to find Drew.

As they leave, Leo bumps into Jason and Piper. Piper nearly goes after her sister but decides against it. Jason waves towards Leo, who nods back.

They find her sitting on the curb of the street with Rachel. Travis and Connor trail along, giving the girl sympathetic looks. The six of them sit on the curbside together, not really saying anything besides the slight whines coming from Drew, and Rachel's quiet muttering.

"She really wanted it that much? It's plastic." Apollo says quietly to Leo. Their hands were linked together between them.

Leo gives a one-shouldered shrug. "I don't know. It's just not plastic to her."

"Oh. Yikes."

"Yeah, exactly."

Rachel stands up, pulling Drew to her feet. "There's not really a reason to stay anymore. Let's get some ice cream and go home. We can even get you _low fat_ ice cream."

"Mhm." Drew reaches up to her bun and lets her hair down. Her voice is shaky and frail. "That sounds good."

" _Hey!_ " Lacy and Calypso burst through the doors. Lacy makes a quick zip to Drew, nearly causing them both to fall when she hugs Drew tightly. Calypso rolls her eyes.

"I'm so so so _so_ sorry! You should've won! I'm sure if we all asked for a recount, it'll be fine." Lacy says confidently.

"No," Drew clears her throat, standing taller than she did before. She wants to make Lacy believe she's strong. Make her believe that Drew isn't a scared little girl inside. "It's fine."

"Well, actually," Calypso waves around her hand. She's holding a tiara- not the baby one that Drew was offered but the real one. The plastic catches the light as Calypso tosses it. "Annabeth said she didn't care about it and figured you'd have more use for it."

Drew hugs the crown to her chest. " _Wow._ " Her hands tremble as she places the crown on her head. Leo has always known Drew to be a spoiled princess, but she looks like a real-life princess now.

Until Rachel grabs the crown from her head. And snaps it in half. Drew's breath cuts off at the sound.

"This is stupid." Rachel snaps the halves apart. "I'm so tired of hearing you talk about this stupid crown all the time. You don't need it, you're already a freaking queen. High school is so lame, this is so lame."

Drew's jaw drops. And then she laughs. And laughs. She keeps laughing until she starts crying again, but this time it's good tears. Her arms wrap around Rachel, who rolls her eyes and pats her head. She kisses her cheek again and again, leaving lipstick smudges and two giggly and happy girls.

"It's so beautiful," Lacy sobs. "Everything is so beautiful tonight!"

Drew starts laughing harder.

* * *

"I never got to ask you to dance." Apollo nudges Leo.

Leo points a spoon at him. "It's too late now, we already left. Man, I _love_ ice cream."

"Hmm," Apollo nods. He points to the side of the building where a speaker hanged playing pop. "Come on Leo, it's romantic."

"I am not dancing with you to _What Makes You Beautiful_ at 11 o clock in front of Häagen Dazs while you have chocolate ice cream on your face."

Apollo wipes the dessert away. "Now you _have_ to do it because it's not on my face."

Leo scoops up the last of his ice cream and drops the spoon. "Fine."

They stand up, surprising their friends. Leo's hands loop around Apollo's neck and Apollo's hands settle on his waist.

"This is dumb," Leo says, though he doesn't feel dumb but rather very nice and warm.

"Okay," Apollo's nose bumps against Leo's. "But I like being dumb with you."

From the corner of his eye, Leo can see Connor and Travis whispering to each other. Drew and Rachel laugh with each other, absorbed in their own universe.

Leo closes his eyes and drops his head onto Apollo's shoulder. He inhales the smell of fresh dryer sheets and feels grounded. At the same time, he feels like he can float. He would drift away like a cloud as he'll get moved wherever life takes him.

"My face hurts."

He feels Apollo's shoulders mover when he takes a breath. "Is that the name of the song, or are you hurt?" Apollo takes Leo's face in his hands to scrutinize it for any bruises. Instead, he finds a giant smile.

"What? Why are you smiling?"

"'Cause I can."

"Okay..."

"It's 'cause I like you. And you like me back. It's crazy."

Apollo kisses him. "I think about that all the time."

Leo nods. "Out of this entire universe, I met _you_. Some giant dork who likes me."

"Lots of people like you."

"Yeah," Leo rests his chin on Apollo's shoulder. His eyes glance from Travis to Rachel to Connor to Drew. He thinks of Piper and Jason. He thinks of Calypso, Annabeth, and Clovis. "But not like _you_ do. I'm going to miss you so much."

"Miss me? I'm right here."

Leo leans back. "Apollo, I'm graduating in a few weeks. I'm leaving the state."

Apollo's lip twitches downward, but only slightly. "I figured. I've thought about it for some time."

"Are we going to-"

"Shh," Apollo pulls Leo into a tight hug. "Let's enjoy this right now. Think of the now, not whatever's going to happen later."

Leo yawns. "Alright, Prince Charming. Stop being too good with words or I might just fall in love with you."

"That's the point," Apollo blows air in Leo's face. "Though I'm not so sure anymore with the number of times you've stepped on my shoe in the past 5 minutes."

"Oh, like you can talk." Leo mocks. "You're a _terrible_ dancer."

Apollo gasps and steps away. "That's it, we're breaking up."

"Oh no! My feet being perfectly normal and not deformed from some other weirdo's feet? The horror!"

Apollo cackles and Leo joins him not soon after that.

The now. Leo's living in the now. And it feels so amazing.

He never wants this night to end.


	27. e (7)

**e**

 **a/n: final chapter, fittingly published during valgrace week ;)**

* * *

He's back in Hera's office, except this visit seems a lot more nostalgic, because in the back of his mind, Leo is aware that this is his last visit.

"You look happy," Hera notes after a few minutes of content silence. "Mind telling me why?"

"'Cause I get to leave this place. No offense, but high school sucks major ass."

Hera smiles. "You're not the first person to say that to me. What are your plans after college?"

"I don't know." Leo shrugs. "I haven't even picked out my major yet. Maybe I'll come back to work at the shop with Jake and Nyssa."

"You don't sound like you really want to do that."

Leo shrugs again.

Hera clicks something into her little tablet. "Have you considered not coming back to town? Maybe traveling, or moving to a bigger city?"

"NYC seems cool." Leo gives it a second thought. "My mom's from Houston, so maybe I can go back there and see some family?"

This statement, for some inconceivable reason, makes Hera sit up. She puts down her tablet and takes off her reading glasses. "You have family in Houston? On your mother's side, if I'm following along correctly?"

"Yeah," Leo shifts around in his bean bag chair. He squeezes it, trying to grab a single bead at a time. "Just an aunt and a cousin. They're okay, I guess. Haven't seen them since I was eight."

"Around your mom's funeral?"

Leo cracks his knuckles. "After the funeral, my dad sent me away to live with her for the rest of the summer. Kind of sucked because Tia hates me. She didn't even like my mom in the first place, and never liked my dad either.

"She always called me _calaca_ and, like, all this shi- uhm, _stuff_ , and kept bossing me around and sent me to church."

Leo hasn't thought about his Aunt Rosa in a while. He had buried her name and memory deep in the recesses of his mind, but here he was, blabbing away to the first person who'd listen.

Leo would blame Hera's surprisingly easy to talk to nature, but finds that this isn't the case, because Hera didn't have to coax anything out of him. He was talking on his own.

He instead blames it on a suppressed and childish need to constantly talk about himself and steal attention. "But it wasn't that bad. My cousin was fine- I feel bad for him, really. Having to deal with her all by himself must be _torture_."

"Is he an only child?" Hera finds this interesting.

"Yeah."

"Have you ever thought about how your life would be different if you didn't live with your family?"

Leo doesn't hesitate. "I'd rather not think about that, _thank you very much_."

Hera folds her hands together. "Would you consider yourself someone really connected to your family?"

"Yeah, of course, why?"

Hera smiles at him. "Your interactions with your family end up shaping your life. How's your father?"

Leo scowls. His finger starts tapping against his knee. "Okay, I think we're _done_ with the interrogation."

"Hmm." Hera's crimson-painted lips twitch. She rests her elbow on the desk and plants her chin in her hand. "Do you have any friends going to the same school as you?"

"Not that I know of," Leo's a bit suspicious of her now. If she drops another question like the one about his father, then he's going to leave. The only thing that's keeping him here is that visiting your counselor before graduation is mandatory. Also, he gets to skip class.

"Have you said your goodbyes then?"

"No. Kinda don't want to."

"You should. It's rude to leave without saying goodbye."

"It's not like we're _not_ going to see each other," Leo says. "And we can always text each other."

"Yes," Hera says, holding up a BlackBerry. "The miracles of modern technology."

"What the _heck_?" Leo snickers. "Who the hell has a BlackBerry nowadays? Your age is showing."

"Funny you should say that with your flip phone."

Leo makes a face and scratches his arm. Luckily, his stupid sling was off, so he was free to scratch as much as he pleased. "Are we done yet?"

"No." Hera looks down at her tablet. "Leo, you're normally not this talkative."

Leo stretches his body out and yawns. He nearly slides off the beanbag chair. "It's cause you can't do any more psychological voodoo bullshit after this. Being a senior is _so_ great."

" _'Psychological voodoo bullshit,'_ " A laugh escapes her. "You're not wrong, I guess. But most students don't mind me prodding around and telling them what's wrong."

"You're not a psychiatrist," Leo says bluntly. "Remember saying that? Also, most students here are super weird."

"I think, Leo," Hera carries on, rolling her eyes, "that you are healing."

" _Healing?_ " Leo gives out a startled chuckle. "Healing from _what?_ " Does she know about Jason, how does she know about _Jason_ -

"Everything bad that's happened to you, child." Hera folds her arms and shuts off her tablet. It vibrates with colors swirling onscreen before flicking to black. "It's taken some time, but I think you're changing. Something about you is different."

" _What?_ "

"Your mother," Hera says, with those eyes of hers staring directly into his. Her eyes pierce into Leo, but not in a hard way- softly, maybe? He's not sure. "Mostly her death- I've read the reports, and you were the only other person in that fire."

"I haven't even thought about her in forever." Leo rubs his face. "You're crazy, woman."

"Maybe. But you're still healing." Hera tilts her head. "And then there's your father, who's rather absent from your life-"

"Please stop," Leo cuts in. "You have no idea what you're talking about."

Hera presses her lips together. "Alright. But bear it all in mind."

The clock clicks to thirty seconds before the next word is spoken, each tick pushing heavily on Leo's thoughts.

"You're really abstruse," Hera sighs. "And I'm also not sure you understand everything that's going on, nor who is or who _isn't_ trying to help you."

 _Abstruse_ (one of the few SAT words that Leo can remember) is not something he would call himself.

"Can I go now?" Leo sits up, ready to dart out the room.

Hera waves her hand. "You've been waiting for this for a long time. It was very nice knowing you, Leo Valdez."

"Right back at you, lady."

Hera's heavy sigh and tiny chuckle is the last thing Leo hears of her before the door slams shut behind him.

* * *

Despite having a baby who's only a few months old, Hedge looks rather energized. It's like the baby's crying and whining is _fueling_ the man.

Mellie does not seem to be faring as well.

"Oh, Jesus, _thank you_." She falls onto the couch with a drawn-out groan. "He just won't shut _up_."

Leo wiggles a finger in front of tiny Chuck's face. He is still suspicious of the name _'Chuck'_ and very much believes that Hedge named him after Chuck Norris. Still, the baby is cute, weird name or not.

"You guys made a very good baby," Leo awkwardly announces. He doesn't have any idea what to say to her.

Mellie's arm is thrown over her face. "Mhm."

"Valdez!" Coach Hedge booms as he enters the living room with bowls of ice cream. "Thank you for babysitting!"

"You said I had to or you'll beat me up. Which by the way, I'm suing for threats on my life."

Hedge waves his hand at Leo and bends down to his wife. He whispers something, making Mellie huff and sit up. Her big brown eyes are circled by dark shadows and lined with plain black makeup. "You truly are wonderful for doing this for us."

"It's fine." Leo sits in an armchair covered with _Sports Illustrated_. He bounces Chuck on his knee, who giggles at the feeling. "It's not like I had anything else to do tonight."

Mellie scowls, an odd movement on her face. "I would love some free time."

Hedge rubs her arms. " _I_ _told_ _you_ \- I wanted to take care of everything, and I'll take care of _you_."

"I know, I know, Gleeson but I just-," Mellie's eyes fall on Leo's lap, where Chuck starts squirming. Her voice gets soft to the point where Leo can't hear, and Hedge responds just as softly.

Leo wanders, wondering if they're the type to use baby formula. Do babies Chuck's age still drink formula? He gives them space by wandering to the kitchen and nosily checking around the cabinets and fridge. It's fully stocked with healthy greens and bright fruits.

The kitchen is a mess of even more cluttered magazines, except there are more coffee stains and crumbs. It's still relatively clean, though it must've happened recently as there's the sharp sting of Clorox in the air.

Leo eyes the cake sitting to the side. It's dripping with sloppily applied buttercream frosting and sprinkles. There are the remnants of blue frosting spelling HAPPY B-THDAY (the IR cut out from someone taking a slice). Mellie didn't look to be in the mood to bake (she didn't seem to be in the mood for much anything) so it must've been Hedge's creation. Can Hedge bake?

The thought of Coach Hedge in a frilly pink apron aggressively mixing batter makes Leo laugh out loud. _More sugar!,_ he'd scream, smashing eggs against the counter.

In his arms, Chuck babbles something that sounds close to his name but isn't quite right (Chuck's name, obviously, Leo hasn't been around enough for Chuck to take enough notice- but if he were to, then Leo would be really easy- tongue to top teeth, tongue down, and then the curving of lips to make an uncertain O: Le-o. Le-o).

"Alrighty, baby," Leo grunts when shifting. "What's for dinner?"

"He likes the peach stuff," Hedge stands by the kitchen doorway. "The puree crap. It's in the freezer."

"Thanks."

"Me and Mells are going to be out for about an hour. There's leftovers in the fridge. You like chow mien, don't you?"

"Yeah, its fine, I guess."

Hedge rubs his chin. "You sure you didn't have anything else to do, Valdez? A kid like you ought to be out there doing something."

"Nah, had nothing," Leo gives Hedge his baby for a second. It's weird to see the normally small in stature man tower over his kid. They've got the same big, round nose. "Besides, it's the perfect time to make little you become evil and learn the way of Leo."

Hedge's whistle dangles in front of Chuck's grabby fingers. Hedge's casual clothes is a slightly more worn out Adidas tracksuit than normal. "Kid, you have no idea what this means for me and my wife. We both wanted to say than-"

"Nuh uh uh." Leo shushes him. "Don't you dare say it." The day Hedge will tell Leo thank you is the day Leo _dies_. They have a mutual understanding, and those words could very much penetrate that. Besides, Leo considers this one of his final memories of Hedge- not a permanent final but a solid kind of final that might not _actually_ be final in some time, but definitely is right now.

Hedge and his wife leave quickly after that. It doesn't take long for him to put Chuck to sleep, meaning Leo has a good amount of time to spare to himself.

Chuck wiggles around a lot.

Will Leo ever have kids? He hadn't really thought of it too much. Children aren't _terrible_ , but it's not like Leo has the most experience. The thought of taking care of others is terrifying though. If he can't take care of himself, how can he take care of others? Leo's learning to though- take care of himself that is.

Regardless, having a child would be crazy. What would Leo even _do_ with it? It's a living, breathing, pulsing human being that would look up to Leo. Hopefully, his kids won't hate him. _God_ , would he even be a good dad? He doesn't have much to go off of.

Crazy.

* * *

He got a C.

While Leo's not a stranger to getting C's in classes- though it's surprisingly been a while- the act of getting one is startingly. His report card had been mailed home early, and Nyssa had snatched it up before Leo could.

A C in Photography! It's a high C, too- almost a B. Leo's pleasantly surprised. Nyssa is not as pleased but is satisfied.

"How can you get anything less than an A?" She folds his report card. "It's an art class."

"Who cares," Leo stretches and smirks. His feet fall into her lap. "I passed all my classes."

Nyssa rolls her eyes. "You know, college isn't easy. And get your stinky toes out of my face."

Leo's foot brushes her cheek. "A freaking C. Am I awesome, or what?"

" _Foot_ ," Nyssa pushes it away. "I think it's your day to cook dinner."

"Not hungry," Leo says. "Why can't we just order a pizza or something?"

"Why would you want a pizza if you're not hungry?" Nyssa slaps at Leo's feet. "Seriously, stop it. Go bother Harley if you're just going to be doing this."

"Nah. You like my feet."

"Trust me when I say, I do not."

Leo sits up. "Are you going to go grocery shopping later? Cause I think we need more rice. And, uh, maybe some more syrup? I think Jake ate it all last week."

"Mhm," Nyssa sighs. "Did you make a list?"

"No, why would I make one?"

"You're hopeless. How are you going to survive out there by yourself?"

"I don't know. I'll come over every week to take out food in containers." Leo laughs at the thought. "I wouldn't have to cook a day in my life."

"You're good at cooking. You'll manage by yourself." Nyssa says, and that's the end of the conversation.

* * *

It's 10:31.

CHB's school colors are still a disgusting neon orange and black, but for some reason, Leo had hoped the colors would've changed between the day before and today. They did not.

Luckily, Leo's a guy, so his graduation gown is black. While it's unbearably hot, according to Drew who sits a few seats down (with the other T's) it's better than looking like a fat pumpkin.

"-It's terrifying yet amazing to see all these faces that I've grown up with-"

Leo doesn't know the people surrounding him. Okay, that's a lie- he's spent 4 years in a small school, so he knows most of their names but he doesn't know them. To his right are handfuls of Valencia's, and to his left is one Valdés.

It's hard to see, but Annabeth is giving a speech to their class. While he obviously doesn't hate Annabeth, sometimes she can go on and on without anyone having a clue what she's talking about. Still, Leo is forced to listen to her voice give encouraging thoughts about the future.

"-The real world is out there, and as we say our final goodbyes to the halls and lockers-"

His family is in the crowd somewhere in the bleachers. Nyssa, Jake, and Harley. Piper and Drew's mom is probably near them too. She and Jake would talk about _Keeping Up With The Kardashians_ and _Project Runway_ , while Harley would be reading one of his Diary of A Wimpy Kid books.

"-And so when we take our steps out into the world, may our past mistakes guide us through-"

He doubts Jason's father is here (and he shares the sentiment), but perhaps his old nanny would be gazing thoughtfully at the rows of orange and black-clad teens. Or maybe even his stepmother might be holding a camera waiting for Jason's name to be called.

Leo slumps back in his chair. How is Annabeth _still_ talking?

He checks his watch again and groans. It's 10:32.

* * *

Leo expected something. He expected to feel a change go through him when the diploma touched his hands. He's mentally aware that the paper is only a placeholder, but still. He should feel some excitement or joy.

Instead, Leo feels nothing but relief and the feeling he gets on three-day weekends where he wakes up early on the Monday but realizes he can continue sleeping for as long as he wants.

"Congratulations, Leonidas." The principal reaches up to shake his hand. Leo has only talked to the man a couple of times and he seemed nice, but even Leo knew to run when those silver wheelchair rims come down the halls.

His hand is warm and firm. "Thanks," says Leo.

Why doesn't he feel different? Graduation is stupid, Leo ultimately decides. He's going back to school in August anyway.

Yet, there is still relief, and _so_ much of it.

* * *

His father is here. His father is here. _Hisfatherisherehisfatherisherehisfatherishere_.

Leo pulls away from Nyssa's arms and nods at his father.

Leo's dad gives him a twisted smile- a strange look that didn't seem to be natural. It reminds Leo of how uncomfortable Mellie's scowl is on her face. "Congrats. You're in the real world now."

"Yeah." He doesn't know what to say. His father's wearing a suit. He's wearing fucking sneakers under his gown. Hisfatherisherehisfatherishere.

"If only your mother was here," His dad continues. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a disposable camera. Leo hadn't known it's possible to still buy one of those around here. "She would take enough pictures to last until you graduate from college."

"Old man..." Jake's wheels are hard to go over grass, but he still makes the effort to move closer to Leo and scowl.

Leo's father snaps a picture. He smiles and a strange sense of pride and achievement floods over Leo. He still feels awkward though- what is he supposed to do at this point? What do you even _say_ to someone like this?

Leo tells his family to move closer together for another picture. He finds it a bit fitting, as the picture is going to be taken by his dad, so he won't be in any of the shots. He'd be in the background and out of view, while Leo and his siblings shine on.

Harley steps on his foot and Nyssa is quick to adjust Jake's sloppy tie. They're all not looking at the camera and bickering amongst each other, but their father keeps taking pictures.

It's like these candids aren't for Leo anymore. They're for him.

* * *

 **CALYPSO [15:04]:** Hey look. You have a GED now.

 **ME [15:04]:** yup

 **CALYPSO [15:04]:** How do you feel about it?

 **ME [15:04]:** idk

 **ME [15:05]:** how shld i feel calypso?

 **CALYPSO [15:05]:** ...

 **CALYPSO [15:27]:** Rachel is having a thing at her house tomorrow

 **ME [15:29]:** yh she invited me

 **CALYPSO [15:33]:** Swimsuit required

 **ME [15:33]:** k

 **CALYPSO [15:34]:** You should bring chips or something to drink

 **ME [15:34]:** k

 **CALYPSO [15:35]:** You okay?

 **ME [15:35]:** im just chillin

 **ME [15:35]:** likr lying in bed

 **CALYPSO [15:37]:** Cool

 **CALYPSO [15:37]:** I don't like summer.

 **ME [15:39]:** its ok

 **CALYPSO [15:39]:** It's too hot. There's too much sun. Too grassy and too many butterflies.

 **ME [15:40]:** its nice

 **CALYPSO [15:41]:** Mosquitos keep biting me, and there's not enough sunscreen. Did you know I have a sunburn on my shoulders? I don't wear sleeveless shirts so I don't know how that happened.

 **ME [15:41]:** lol

 **CALYPSO [15:41]:** Oh, and the bees.

 **ME [15:43]:** wht abt the bees

 **CALYPSO [15:45]:** They're fucking everywhere. I thought they were going extinct.

 **ME [15:45]:** they r

 **CALYPSO [15:45]:** So why are they always buzzing near me? Do they want to die?

 **ME [15:46]:** lol u wouldnt

 **CALYPSO [15:46]:** Why would God make such an important thing so bothersome? It wouldn't be a problem if bees didn't suddenly buzz and zip by you.

 **ME [15:46]:** u believe in god?

 **CALYPSO [15:47]:** I think to some extent, yes.

 **CALYPSO [15:47]:** Only because I want to go to heaven, and supposedly, this is the way to do it.

 **ME [15:48]:** heaven

 **CALYPSO [15:49]:** It's nice to think about. My mom used to take me to church when I was younger. Christianity and whatnot.

 **ME [15:49]:** same

 **ME [15:50]:** she ddnt take me 2 church but she ws relihios 2

 **CALYPSO [15:56]:** I find it truly a gift from God that I can actually understand what you type

 **ME [16:02]:** sorry it takes too long to keep pressing a button just to get a letter

 **CALYPSO [16:03]:** Yeah it does, LOL, it took you a solid 5 minutes to write that.

 **ME [16:03]:** :/ punctuation is more work

 **CALYPSO [16:07]:** Anyway, my mom took me to church every so often, and some of that stuck with me

 **ME [16:07]:** do u have a bible

 **CALYPSO [16:07]:** Yeah, but it's written in Greek. I don't know why you would want a bible anyway. Do you believe in God?

 **ME [16:07]:** idk

 **ME [16:08]:** maybe

 **ME [16:08]:** who knowt

 **CALYPSO [16:21]:** Yeah, I get that.

 **ME [16:23]:** if there was a god then he fcked me up n idk how i feel about it all

 **CALYPSO [16:23]:** Everyone's screwed up

 **CALYPSO [16:23]:** I don't think it'll matter in the end. It's better to just, you know.

 **CALYPSO [16:24]:** Be.

 **ME [16:29]:** wise and sage

 **ME [16:30]:** also r u on drugs

 **ME [16:30]:** u talk like ur in a movi

 **CALYPSO [16:34]:** Yeah, my dude, it's like totes cool! Everything is lit here, don't stress, just stay woke, the world is all about getting turnt and dabbing away the pain. Yaaaas, don't worry as long as you're looking on fleek with your SNATCHED body, shit's going to be real fucking nice. Keep it real, fam and don't worry about shit, it's all good.

 **ME [16:34]:** lol pls talk like that 4 the rest of ur life

 **CALYPSO [16:35]:** I'm good.

 **CALYPSO [16:52]:** Still chilling? How's that going for you?

 **ME [16:54]:** ive been staring at my face 4 a while now

 **ME [16:54]:** i have a weird nose

 **CALYPSO [16:55]:** You do

 **ME [16:55]:** and my neck is tiny

 **ME [16:55]:** im a boble head

 **CALYPSO [16:56]:** LOL, I think your neck is fine

 **ME [16:56]:** it has moles

 **CALYPSO [16:56]:** Lots of people have moles.

 **ME [17:01]:** whtever

 **ME [17:01]:** its

 **ME [17:01]:** nvm

 **ME [17:01]:** what r u doing

 **CALYPSO [17:03]:** Looking for a swimsuit. There's so many options, it's insane.

 **ME [17:03]:** oh

 **CALYPSO [17:04]:** Normally you'd say something like "send some pics cals ;)". Are you okay?

 **ME [17:06]:** snd some pics cals ;)

 **ME [17:06]:** idk its just like my face

 **ME [17:06]:** do i always look punchable lo

 **ME [17:07]:** and have this dumb look on it

 **CALYPSO [17:20]:** Yes, probably

 **CALYPSO [17:21]:** Stop looking at your face

 **ME [17:21]:** how? its my body tho

 **CALYPSO [17:21]:** Are you only my friend so I can tell you how cool you are? That's messed up

 **ME [17:22]:** no

 **ME [17:22]:** so u admit were frieds

 **CALYPSO [17:25]:** Yes, I admit we are definitely frieds. Though what type of fried are we talking about here? Fried chicken? Fried shrimp? I do love french fries.

 **ME [17:25]:** fried rice

 **CALYPSO [17:25]:** Yum

* * *

"It's funny, right?" Connor says. "Like, you can feel really angry one minute and start crying the next without knowing why."

"Yeah," Leo's feet kick at the water. It sends ripples spreading throughout the pool. Connor hugs his legs to his chest, watching the pool waters shift and move. "I get really hungry and tired sometimes. Then I don't."

Connor nods. "I eat when I have the energy to or remember. But I'm mostly _not_ hungry. I try eating to not freak out my family so they don't think I have some kind of disorder."

Leo leans back on his palms. He closes his eyes under his sunglasses and hums quietly.

"Um, I mean _eating_ disorder, you know?" Connor corrects. "But it's hard to explain how I'm feeling to other people. Trav can be a dick and my parents are- well, _uh_ , _parents_. And Luke is just an entirely different issue."

"Yeah." Leo says.

Something tugs on Leo's foot followed by a loud splash. Leo opens his eyes to find Travis staring up at him in the middle of a giant donut float. His arms are folded over painted sprinkles and strawberry frosting. "What's up? Can you guys come to the deep end like the rest of us?"

Connor leans over the pool edge to splash water at his brother. Leo takes off his sunglasses and jumps in.

He drops to the bottom, eyes wide. Travis' skinny legs kick wildly next to him. A bit farther are the treading legs of Leo's other friends.

Leo debates releasing his breath, even as he kicks back up to the surface. He does not.

"We're wondering if we should see a movie next week," Rachel says when the two swim over to the deeper end of the pool. Her tan line is visible every time she moves her shoulders and her white straps slip.

Nico is lying on a blue float with his hands beneath his head and feet crossed in front of him. Leo leans precariously on the edge of the floating device. "It needs to be horror," Nico inputs.

Leo still isn't very good at watching horror movies. He hasn't played a video game in months. Casually, maybe, but not for more than 30 minutes. He used to spend hours trying to defeat bosses or saving worlds. "Uh, what's wrong with action movies?"

"They're all boring and end the same way." Nico grimaces. His hand itches at his belly.

Travis and Rachel start bickering over ownership of the donut float. She repeatedly tries to dive under the water and swim into the circle, but Travis always manages to get away.

Calypso sleeps one of the lounge chairs. She has on a black bikini and it looks really good. Sexy, almost? From this angle, Leo can see her chest going up and down in slow movements. Or maybe she's not sleeping- her sunglasses are dark and she's sitting in the shade. Maybe she's watching Leo the same way he's watching her.

Leo dives back into the water. It's so quiet and calm down there. Leo can't reach the floor here at the deep end, and something about that is comforting.

"How about Rom-Com's?" Connor's comment reaches Leo's water-filled ears when he breaks the surface. "Some of those are good."

"You only like The Princess Bride, which is not a rom-com." Nico retorted.

Connor's face flames up. Can he swim? Leo hasn't seen him go in the water yet. Connor's just always been sitting on the edge, knees to chest. "I like other movies!"

"Mythomagic doesn't count," Nico says and then pauses. "Everyone likes Mythomagic."

Leo laughs, and Connor rolls his eyes.

Rachel got the float back and Travis admits defeat as he backstrokes over to them. He settles next to Leo, hesitates, and then slides over to give him more space. For a second, Leo feels like shit. "Still talking about movies?"

Rachel appears in between Travis and Leo, donut floatless. She grins at them all. "How does every conversation always end up at Mythomagic?"

"I think it's because of Neko," Travis shares an identical grin. Their hands both drop into the water. "It's all Neko likes talking about."

"Isn't it strange how he got this float all to himself?" Rachel continues. "He claimed it as soon as he got here."

"I think he's had his time, Rach."

"I think so too, Trav."

"It's just that, he's been laying on it for so _long_..."

"And it just so happens that it can fit two people..."

"And we _both_ wanted one."

Nico's head shoots up and he tries to push them away from him, "Wait, guys-" His float flips over sending Nico tumbling into the pool with a loud SPLASH! that was nearly unheard because of his loud scream. Leo's hands fly up to avoid the splash as he dissolves into laughter, and Connor flinches away from the scene with soft snickers.

" _Awesome_ ," Travis sighs, flopping back on the float. His side sinks lower than Rachel's but he doesn't care. "Aw, look at him."

Nico pushes back his wet hair. He glares and pulls on the float. "Seriously, give it back."

"Nah," Rachel pushes against the pool wall so the two could float away.

" _Seriously_." Nico paddles back to them. It's a futile effort because the other two kick away whenever Nico grows near.

From the side, Leo can hear Calypso's delighted laughter. Connor drops his feet into the water and beams at Leo.

Leo feels at peace, ardor and zest coiling up within him.

* * *

Seeing Jason's tattoo is still surprising. It's been there for a few months, yet it's strange. Jason's so much more mature than Leo.

Leo stares at the stretch of skin from afar. He never had the chance to ask Jason what the bars or eagle means. Jason doesn't notice Leo openly staring. Piper does. She doesn't say anything about it.

"Oh, I hate this part," Piper mumbles, twisted look on her face.

"You hate _all_ the parts." Leo says, though he would have to agree with Piper- the movie was starting to get slow.

One of Jason's favorite movies is _Silence of the Lambs_. It's boring, and Leo doesn't understand most of it. His other favorite movie is _Peter Pan_. Jason's confusing.

Jason takes off his glasses and rubs his eyes. "It's when all the connections are made."

"Can't we just watch the ending again?" Piper pokes her boyfriend. "Ending! Ending!"

"Ending. Ending." Leo follows along. He pulls at the blanket the three were sharing and spears his fork through his piece of cake. "Ending. Ending."

"Guys, you're missing the good parts!"

"Ending! Ending!"

Jason turns the volume louder and keeps the laptop closer to himself. The voices of Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins fill the room as the two argue onscreen. Jason looks too smug with himself when Piper gives up.

She only gives up because it's Jason's birthday, and she's a good girlfriend. Leo can respect that because he can see right through her. Piper has good intentions and it annoys him.

"Do you want to play?" Piper shuffles towards Leo. She offers her fist and shakes it up and down.

"Sure." Leo holds his fist across from hers.

"Rock-"

"-Paper-"

"-Scissors-"

"-Lizard-"

"-Spock!"

Piper wins. They keep playing until Jason begrudgingly turns off the movie and stares at them. He leaves Piper's bedroom to go to the bathroom.

"Not fair," Leo snatches his hand away. "Rock beats scissors."

"I messed up!" Piper gasps. "Let's try it again-"

"I'm tired." Leo yawns. He stands and stretches, fingertips barely skirting the ceiling. "It's like 3 AM."

"Is it?" Piper leans across the bed to look at her charging phone. "Yikes. At least tomorrow's Sunday."

"Yeah," He bends over to dig in his overnight bag. It's not much of an overnight bag, considering Leo can walk next door for anything he needed, but it's a bag of clean clothes and his toothbrush. Maybe he should take a shower and wait for the other two to fall asleep. He heard the toilet flush so the bathroom should be free soon.

Alright. It's a plan then.

* * *

He sits in the shower for nearly an hour. Maybe. It's hard to tell time.

He's physically sitting too- the waters arch over him before hitting the wall and coming back down towards the drain where Leo's sitting. His hair's wet but tied up and he can't see anything but the image of white and blue tiles burned into his retinas.

It's definitely odd. Leo has no desire to leave. It's not like he's staying in the bathroom to avoid his friends (though that was the original point in some twisted way). Leo just feels... content. He feels content where he is right now and doesn't have any wish to move.

He does have to after a while though. When his fingers begin to look like 2nd generation raisins (raisins made of raisins made of grapes), Leo grabs a towel to dry off.

When he peeks back into the room, Piper and Jason aren't in sight. He wanders through the hallway and down the stairs.

In the kitchen, they're drinking milk and eating more birthday cake. Piper's sitting on the counter, with Jason rummaging through the freezer.

"-is over at a friend's house." Piper was explaining. Jason snorts and responds with something about not finding the ice trays.

"Thought it was bedtime guys." Leo makes his presence known. The kitchen tiles feel cold under his feet. "Not throw-a-secret-party time."

"It's fine," Piper tells Leo. "We're celebrating a _very_ special birthday."

"It's not that special." Jason says at the same time as Leo's "He's only nineteen."

"Whatever," She dismisses them with a sip from her mug. It's a yellow thing marked with a smiley face that happily grins at Leo. "It might be the last time we'll hang out together like this."

"Don't say that," Jason licks his fork. "We have the rest of the summer."

Leo echoes a _Yeah_ , but doesn't mean it. He feels like a liberated man, and therefore not up for making any plans right now. He mostly wants to stay with his family for some time.

"Leo's birthday's coming up." Jason reminds them. "He'll be eighteen by then."

Yeah. That's a thing. _Leo's_ thing, technically. He's never been one for birthdays ever since his mom died. Maybe even before that.

By then, Leo would have already moved into his dorm. His birthday is at the end of August (February 14th, July 1st, August 31- all ones in the date because they're all number 1 to each other, or at least that's how Leo remembered it), and he'd celebrate it through a couple-hours-long phone call with his family, while eating a cupcake bought from the nearest supermarket.

"Yeah, we'll meet then," Piper carries on. She leans her head against the cabinets, humming softly. "I _love_ summer."

Does everyone have such strong opinions of summer? Calypso hates it, Piper loves it... why can't people just not have an opinion? It's not like Leo asked for it. Personally, he doesn't care for the seasons and likes them as they go. Seasons have certain good things, and certain bad things. There, that's it. He doesn't need to like or hate _anything_.

"It's okay," Jason says, unknowingly expressing Leo's opinion. Leo breathes through his nose, a familiar but dulled feeling creeping up his bones again. "It's hot but there's no school."

"Yeah, definitely, but it's so great." Piper sits up. "I need to get a job or something. Drew got one and my mom has been talking about it forever."

"What's she doing?" Leo sits on the counter next to her. The back of his legs jolt at the chill of the marble.

"Frozen yogurt. She said because it's right next to the community pool, all the hot people come in to cool down." Piper offers Leo some of her cake, to which he declines. She drops the plate in the sink with a clatter. "She said because the place needs to be cold, she wouldn't have to worry about sweating off her makeup or something."

Piper talks a lot. It's not bad- no, definitely not bad or else this entire thing might be awkward- but Leo's only now recognizing this. Huh. He assumed that _he_ normally does the talking (and maybe he did at some point, but not now, not here) out of the three of them but he supposes his place falls along a more _quieter_ path.

It's strange.

JasonPiperLeo. JasonPiperLeo. JasonPiperLeo. His mantra beats in the back of his head like war drums.

Jason's on his phone. "Drew doesn't need makeup."

"Piper does," Leo gives Piper the stink eye and she playfully pushes him with her shoulder. "She's _ugly_."

"I don't even wear that much makeup. Just some chapstick and eyeliner, because I have, um, _almond-shaped eyes_." Piper shrugs. "My dad doesn't like it when I wear too much, but my mom and Drew does. It's a weird balance."

"That literally means nothing to me," Leo says.

"I didn't expect it to." Piper lifts up one of her legs. Her fingers twirl her hair. "I think I'm gonna cut my hair. Like, real short."

"You're crazy." Leo tugs on a strand of her hair. "You're too much of a pussy to cut your hair."

"You wanna bet?"

"See," Jason faces his phone towards them, shoving his fork into his mouth. It's a picture of Drew from freshman year, with her jeans folded to her knees and a sloppy ponytail with an equally as sloppy grin. Leo recognizes the picture- he's actually in it, but Jason zoomed in to only show the pixels that create Drew. "No makeup, and she still looks pretty. And look-"

"Oh God," Piper snorts when Jason slides his finger to show Piper's dorky face instead.

"-No makeup, and she looks _beautiful_ ," Jason kisses Piper's cheek and her shoulders shake with laughter. Leo delicately steals the phone away, while they're occupied with themselves. Piper and Jason are a giggling mess together, leaving Leo no clue as to where one ends and the other begins.

He looks through Jason's camera roll. It extends to 7th grade, which Leo should've expected because Jason backs up all his files. There's a lot of pictures of Piper, but there are just as many with Leo in them.

He has an entire album dedicated to the three of them, the most recent picture being from graduation, where Leo was blurring out of the frame because Nyssa had been calling him. The earliest was some awkward selfie taken when they were jammed in the backseat of a car (Leo only faintly remembers that car, a small eco-friendly thing that Thalia got when she turned 16 and hated). Back when Leo had braces, Piper was taller than him, and Jason was starting to not be able to read signs because of his dumb vision.

Flipping through the pictures is an unsettling walk down memory lane. Leo gets to watch himself grow through Jason's eyes. Jason's weird with his camera and takes odd pictures when neither Piper nor Leo are looking. Leo finds himself sleeping or doing work, eating or laughing with other people. There's an entire set of pictures that were taken in burst mode, so 50 pictures of Leo laughing and using his hands to cover the camera fill Jason's cloud storage.

It's creepy, but at the same time nostalgic. It's worse that Jason's semi-good with a lens in hand so Leo finds himself falling in love all over again (not with himself, obviously, but the knowing smirk and blue eyes who gaze at the camera ever so often).

By the time he's hit last year, Leo starts disappearing from the pictures. More and more Piper. Piper, Piper, PiperLeo, Piper, Piper, Piper, JasonPiper, JasonPiperLeo, JasonLeo, Piper, JasonPiper. It just goes on and on, until Leo hits the jackpot of PiperPiperPiperPiper and Only Piper. Leo's finger flicks through the pictures faster than he can really absorb them. Where is he? Whereishe? WhereishewhereishewhyisthereonlyPiperandJasonhere?

"What're you looking at?" Jason peers at the screen.

"Fuck you," Leo says, distracted. He pauses, then looks up. He didn't mean to say that but at the same time he _said it_.

" _Dude_ ," Piper holds her hand over the screen to grab his attention. "Don't say that. What's up?"

"Sorry," Leo tries to amend.

Jason scratches the back of his neck, "It's fine, just- can I have my phone back?"

Leo gives it back, and the air is so thick with awkwardness that he is losing his breath. Jason puts the dishes in the sink, and the clatter and clicks are too loud for any of them.

"You guys are being weird." Piper finally says, scratching at a mosquito bite on her thigh. Her shorts ride up when she slides off the counter. "Just kiss and make up already."

"But we-" Piper pushes Jason towards Leo.

"I'm going to set up the air mattress and take a shower. You two better be proper best friends when I get back."

"Bossy," slips out of Jason's mouth when she's gone. His eyes grow wide as he covers his mouth. "I didn't say that."

"Whatever." Leo crosses his legs. "She's not entirely wrong. You've been weird to me ever since it all went down."

"I have not."

"I think you're disgusted by me," Leo says. "Or now that you _know_ , you don't know how to approach me."

Jason's mouth contorts curiously at that. "I'm not- I'm not _disgusted_ by you, Leo. I could never be."

Leo jerks his arm away when Jason tries to lay a hand on his bicep. "Stop it."

"I'm just confused," Jason averts his eyes. "It's weird."

"I should've kept my big mouth shut," Leo rubs his arms. "This is fucking bullshit. I really shouldn't have kissed you, or even _told_ you I liked you."

"I think it's good you did." Jason's not helpful when he's trying to be and Leo _hates_ it. "It clears the air. I kind of thought you hated me this entire year, remember?"

"Jeez," Leo drops his head. "Stupid, stupid, stupid."

"Hey, stop it," Jason lifts Leo's face up, cradling his face with pale fingers. "Don't call yourself stupid."

"I'm not. I'm saying how stupid all of this is."

Jason doesn't let go of Leo. "It's not stupid. You just need to say how you feel."

"I _know_ how I feel, and I _told_ you how I feel." Leo scowls, tugging at Jason's fingers. Jason's hands slide from Leo's face to Leo's hands. "Stop pushing all this on me. You keep saying how much you understand, and how much you care, but you're not telling me anything!"

"Sorry," Jason's apologizing for God knows why. "It's like I said, I'm still confused."

"Confused about _what?!_ What the hell do _you_ have to be confused about?" Leo glares.

" _You_ , mostly." Jason holds his hand up in front of Leo's face. Except it's not just his hand but it's also Leo's hand interlaced with it. "It's like I told you- when you first kissed me, I wanted to fight you, but now I don't know anymore."

"That means nothing to me." Leo said that earlier to Piper. Does anything ever mean anything anymore?

"God, Leo, I'm _confused_. I love Piper, and you like me."

"I didn't just like you," Leo snatches his hands away. His entire being is on fire. "I fucking _loved_ you, Jay."

"Oh," Jason bites his lip. "Do you still-"

"Don't ask me that." Leo snaps. " _Christ sake_ , do _not_ ask me that."

Jason breathes out- he must be mentally counting, Leo's seen him do it before. "How'd you know? That you liked me? _Please_ , Leo."

Leo gets off the counter. He feels unsteady like he's going to fall to the ground and not get back up again. "It's like I told you. Same as you knew with Piper."

"Leo."

"Fine," Leo huffs. Why can't Jason leave him alone? Why does this always happen to him? "I couldn't get you out my head. Everything you did stuck in my mind, and I couldn't stop talking about you to anyone who'd listen."

Jason is breathless, "What else?"

Leo sighs, eyebrows furrowing with frustration. "What do you want me to say? I couldn't stop worrying about you? I hated it when you weren't around and always wanted to know if you were okay? I literally couldn't organize my thoughts and my body felt weird around you? Whenever you smiled at me, I melted right then and there? Is _that_ what you want to hear?"

Jason surges forward. At first, for some odd reason, he thinks Jason's going to kiss him (it's worse because Leo would not be against that at all), but instead he's pulled into a tight hug.

" _Oh god_ , Leo." Jason repeats over and over again. "Oh my _God_."

Leo hesitantly hugs back. Barely over Jason's shoulder, Leo can see Piper standing at the doorway. She's crying- Leo doesn't understand why. He doesn't understand much of what's going on, actually.

"Come here," Leo mumbles and Piper runs. They're one giant mass of people, no end, no beginning.

Leo finds the reciprocation as the best part. These two must really love him, if they hug him so tightly that he might pass out. He is still very frustrated but now is not the time.

Like a match, he burns slowly, waiting to be lit again.

* * *

Packing boxes isn't particularly fun.

Harley isn't as helpful as Leo had originally hoped him to be. He mainly threw the things that he wanted to keep for himself towards the door.

"I'm not dying, dumbass." Leo slaps him upside the head. "I'm only bringing over my books and posters."

"Burn your clothes!" Harley licks his lips. Blue raspberry candy stains his tongue a dark color. "I'm tired of wearing your ugly hand me downs."

"You love my shirts." Leo pulls out a black Star Wars t-shirt. "If I wasn't taking this with me, you would be wearing it in a few years."

"Lies!" Harley licks his lips. "Does this mean I can have your LEGOS?"

"Hell no, those were expensive." Leo shrugs. "Besides, Jake already hot glued most of them together anyway."

"Uggggggh." Harley slumps over Leo. He crosses his arms around Leo's neck, pushing Leo forward with his weight. "Can I have your DS?"

"No. I need to pick up chicks and Pokemon."

" _Chicks_ ," Harley repeats. "Chicks, chicks, chicks. Girls are gross."

"What about your girlfriend? Holly?"

"Holly's not my girlfriend! Laurel is nice but Holly- she's- she's- stupid! She didn't know how to spell gigantic and egregious."

Leo's head spun to look at him. "What did you just say to me? You definitely just told me a fake word."

"E-G-R-E-G-I-O-U-S! Egregious!" Harley lets go of Leo and dances around the room. " _Egregious!_ "

"Jeez, how much candy did you eat?" Leo's legs spread out, his foot wiggling side to side. "And what does egregious mean?"

Harley stops in front of Leo, striking a pose. "I have no idea. It's egregious! You hear me? Egregious!"

"Oh my God, _shut up!_ " Leo links his arms around Harley's waist, bringing the kid falling to Leo's mercy. His fingers tickle the boy's sides. Harley's feet kick wildly as he giggles and slaps at Leo's hands.

When Leo finally lets up, Harley gasps and rolls onto his stomach. "You suck. I want you to leave already so I can have your room."

"You are _so_ not having my room." Leo throws his legs over his brother. "And I already told you, I'm coming back for the holidays. Which means my room is _mine_."

"Hmph," Harley pouts and squirms around. He then stops, and stares at Leo with wide eyes. Harley pats at his pockets wildly. "Uh oh."

"Uh oh? What is uh oh?" Leo squints at him.

"Isnothing," Harley presses his face against the floor. "Don'tworryaboutit."

"Tell me," Leo scoots closer to the boy. He digs his elbow into Harley's back. "Come on, what'd you do."

"Get off of me!"

"Tell me then!"

"It's nothing!"

"Then tell me!"

"Okay, okay!" Leo lets Harley free, who scrambles to a crouch and analyzes the room. "Ilostmytooth."

"What was that?"

"I LOST MY TOOTH!" Harley flushes. "It was in my pocket because it came out! Now it's gone and Jake can't put a dollar under my pillow!"

Leo's eyebrows dip downward. "Wait, you get a _dollar?_ What the heck- I got 50 cents!"

"It's the economy and inflation," Harley mumbles. He crawls on the floor, pushing all of Leo's stuff in different directions. "That's what Jake said. He only got 75 cents from Daddy."

" _75 cents?_ I only got 50!" Leo exclaims, perplexed. "Why are my teeth less than yours, you're not special. And Jake had terrible teeth, why was his worth more?"

"Economy and inflation!" Harley's voice gets high at the end.

Leo lies down on the floor (he is very cautious to avoid falling on any of Harley's possibly-lost-food-munchers). "Now what does _that_ mean?"

"I dunno. I'm 8. You're the one going to college in two weeks. You're going to _old people school_."

Leo snorts. "Damn, Harls, you're right. Maybe you should go to school for me."

"Okay. Then I won't have to deal with Holly. But I'll miss Laurel..."

Leo shoots finger guns at Harley. Pew. "Holly- your girlfriend, right?"

" _No!_ "

* * *

"What are you doing?"

Leo looks up from the rock in his hand to see Drew catching her breath. One of her earbuds bounces on her chest, spilling out bubblegum pop. Her white sneaker nudges Leo's leg. "Yo. Leo."

Leo slaps at Drew's ankle and pats the patio next to him. "Come sit with me."

"My house is literally right there." Drew sits down regardless. She smells of sweat and antiperspirant. "Why are you throwing rocks at the squirrels?"

"Dunno." Leo leans back. "I'm bored."

"Hon, if you're so bored, there are other _nonpsychotic_ things for you to do." Drew reaches for her toes. She has deep pit stains from sweat, but Drew makes them look like they're nothing.

"I heard you were going to art school," Leo says.

Drew pinkens. "Yeah. What, you're going to tell me that art school is useless too?"

"No," Leo looks at her. "I'm not gonna shit on your dreams. If you want to be an artist, go ahead, it's not my decision."

Her mouth pops open. "I-" She frowns. "Thanks."

"Don't thank me for being a semi-decent person," Leo throws his rock at the mailbox. It bounces off with a metallic clang.

Drew stares at Leo strangely. She sighs and wipes her forehead with a laugh. "You know, for a loser, you're kind of cute."

"Gee thanks. For a total Regina George, you're kind of cute too."

"I wish I was attracted to you," Drew sighs again. "It'll make things so much easier and more convenient."

"Piper would _probably_ kick our asses though. But I see what you mean."

"Yeah."

"Yeah."

* * *

He feels great.

Leo's watching Nyssa and Jake murmur on the patio, with Harley jumping around screaming about paletas de fresas con crema. Apollo's huffing as he fits Leo's boxes into a small moving van.

"You know, it'll be a lot easier if you helped." Apollo grunts to Leo, who's leaning against the side door.

"I know," Leo doesn't move. There's not much else anyway. Besides, he wants to take a mental snapshot of everything. Of his family and of his house. He finally moves when he realizes he forgot his phone charging in the kitchen.

"Are we sure we can trust him?" Jake whispers to Nyssa.

She narrows her eyes at Apollo. "Leo seems to trust him, so we need to trust him too."

"Leo doesn't exactly have the _best_ judgment..." Jake's eyes fall on Leo when he approaches. "You ready for the big leagues, bro?"

"Don't act like you weren't just talking about me," Leo rubs his knuckles into Jake's head. "You know, it's rude to talk behind someone's back."

" _You know_ , it's rude to noogie your older bro, _bro_." Jake sticks his tongue out at him. "Why are you still here anyway? Leave already!"

"Just getting my phone."

When he comes back outside (he took a second to survey his half-empty room- Harley seems to have already moved in despite Leo's previous warnings), Nyssa is talking to Apollo, and Jake is tweeting about " _his baby bro growing up :')_ ". Harley is next door, holding his finger on the doorbell.

Leo really wishes he hadn't done that, because Piper comes out, along with Drew and Aphrodite.

"Oh Leo!" Aphrodite hugs Leo to her chest. Leo can't breathe when he's surrounded by breasts and flowery perfume, but she doesn't seem to register that. "You're leaving without saying goodbye? How dare you not say goodbye to me, after I've seen you grow up right in front of my eyes!"

"Mom," Piper touches her arm, and Aphrodite lets him go with a _Oh!_

Piper watches with careful eyes as Leo fixes his clothes and hair. He flicks his sunglasses on top of his head. "So."

"So." Dumb Harley, ruining his escape plan. It might've been childish and reckless for Leo to not tell Piper when he was leaving, but it would've saved him from this. Leo gives an awkward half-wave. "Guess I'm about to hit the road."

"Right," Piper hugs herself. She's wearing flip-flops and a sleeveless summer dress with bright red, blue, and purple triangle patterns. "I hear you're going to have student loans for the rest of your life."

"Maybe I'll find me a sugar daddy to pay them off."

"Ha, maybe," Piper sniffs. Apollo honks from inside the truc, and waves wildly. Piper gestures to him. "Who's that? He looks familiar."

"Um," _My boyfriend, my boyfriend, my boyfriend._ "Just Apollo. I think you guys met once, at like, the grocery store."

For some reason, he couldn't say it. Leo wanted to, he really did, but he _couldn't_. Not to Piper. Why can't he just tell Piper? He needs to tell Piper. He really _should_ tell Piper. _Why can't he tell Piper?_

Piper averts her eyes. They're unusually red and her voice is soft. "Uh huh. That's... cool, I guess. Am I keeping you?"

"Not really," Leo sticks his hands in his pocket. "I'm really waiting for the, uh, popsicles to freeze."

"Oh cool. Strawberry?"

"You know it, Beauty Queen."

Piper smiles at that, tucking a hair behind her ear. Leo wonders if she is actually serious about cutting it short. "I haven't heard you say that in forever. Can you please just stay with me? I need you."

Leo's laugh comes out more forcefully than he would've liked. "Sorry, no can do. But we'll text or something, right?"

"Yeah." Piper hesitates, but then pulls him into a hug.

"Love you, Leo."

"Love you too, Pipes."

It takes Leo another hour to finally get back in the truck with Apollo. Nyssa was exhaustingly clingy, Jake was exceedingly talkative, and Harley had _very_ mixed emotions about a new movie coming out.

The AC blows into Leo's face, and the car freshener makes the car smell of cinnamon. Outside his window, both his family and Piper's wave goodbye with paletas in mouth. Piper stands more towards the side, lip trembling and still hugging herself. She also waves goodbye, and Leo can't help but turn away because it's too much for him.

He focuses on Apollo, who shifts the car from park to drive and opens a bag of Twizzlers.

"Ready?" Apollo kisses his cheek and gnaws on a Twizzler.

All he tastes is strawberries. Energy surges through him as he drums his fingers on the door.

"Ready to go, or did you forget something again?" Apollo asks again, turning the music on louder. He's literally listening to his own voice. _Oh God_ , Apollo is listening to himself singing a cover of a Beatles song. Leo's more upset that Apollo does _Let it Be_ more justice than Paul McCartney.

What a nerd. Leo snorts and beams at Apollo, who grins and starts driving.

It's when Leo knows they left the town, that he looks at the rearview mirror. Behind him is his entire life, slowly becoming a microscopic dot and being pushed away from his mind. In the mirror, when Leo looks back at himself, he doesn't see the stars that glitter in Apollo's eyes, or the ones that have been crushed and smashed to pieces in Piper's.

He sees the sun- a bright and unstoppable force that warms him up from the inside. Fiery, hot, merciless, golden, magnificent, radiant, beautiful sun.

Leo's going to be okay.

He's going to be _okay_.

* * *

 **a/n: thank u for sticking with me, hope u have a good day :)**


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